Scopolamine is a prescription medication usually prescribed in the form of a transdermal patch. It is used to prevent symptoms associated with motion sickness, including nausea and vomiting. It has several other clinical uses as well. Scopolamine is commonly prescribed before travel on ships and airplanes when motion sickness is anticipated. This paper will explore several studies that have identified specific actions of scopolamine, including its effect when used at sea, its effect on cognitive performance, and its effect on patients experiencing myocardial infraction.
Scopolamine is an alkaloid drug derived from plants in the Solanaceae family. This family of plants are called nightshade plants, and some examples are henbane and jimson weed. The chemical formula of scopolamine is C17H21NO4. Brand names include Scopoderm and Transderm-V. The medication works as an antagonist at muscarinic acetylcholine receptors by blocking the acetylcholine-mediated nerve impulses that travel to the inner ear. The inner ear is where the sense of balance is regulated in humans. Acetylcholine (Ach) is a major transmitter found in the autonomic ganglia that allows neurons to communicate for sensory input and muscle control. Muscarinic receptors are vital in the control of the central nervous system (CNS) and also parasympathetic control of the heart, lungs, and gastrointestinal processes. By blocking the action of these receptors, a result is possible impaired central and peripheral nervous system functioning. Inhibiting this functioning could also cause tachycardia, which can lead to myocardial infarction (heart attack) or angina (chest pain).
Scopolamine is also used as a pupil dilator, in pain management, and to treat symptoms ass...
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...of Myocardial Infarction." Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association 88 (1993): 353-57. AHA Journals. Web. 20 Nov. 2013. .
Ebert, U., and W. Kirch. "Scopolamine Model of Dementia: Electroencephalogram Findings and Cognitive Performance." European Journal of Clinical Investigation 28 (1998): 944-49. Pubmed.com. Web. 24 Nov. 2013.
Price, N.M., M.D., L.G. Schmitt, R.N., J. McGuire, Ph.D., J.E. Shaw, Ph.D., and G. Trobough, M.D. "Transdermal Scopolamine in the Prevention of Motion Sickness at Sea." Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics 29 (1980): 414-19. Pubmed.com. Web. 26 Nov. 2013.
"Scopolamine Transdermal Patch: MedlinePlus Drug Information." U.S National Library of Medicine. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 20 Nov. 2013. .
Antiarrhythmic agents are used to suppress abnormal rhythms of the heart. Many attempts have been made to classify antiarrhythmic agents. There is a problem from the fact that many of the antiarrhythmic agents have multiple actions, making any classification accurate. Betapace (sotalol) comes in tablets and solution for oral a...
It is not rare for doctors to prescribe antidepressants and/or anti-psychotics to those who are suffering from PTSD or mental issues such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Also common is the prescribed use of sedatives to promote sleep in veterans who are suffering from insomnia or other sleeping conditions. Unfortunately, these can be very dangerous. Referring to sedatives or hypnotic sleep medications, “These medicines work on specific nerve endings in the brain, called benzodiazepine receptors, which act by slowing down the nervous system.”(Hoge, 2010 pg 77) Sedatives and other prescription sleep aids should only be used as a last resort and if they are used they are to be taken with extreme caution. Typically what will happen is veterans who drink heavily after deployment will use alcohol while under the influence of these medications. Seeing as how these drugs slow down your nervous system, when they are combined with alcohol the result can be deadly. Furthermore, these drugs can be highly addictive and in turn will make things worse in the long
Drugs: propylthiouracel, methimazole, anesthesia, barbituates, beta blockers, diuretics, lithium, narcotics, phenothiazines, phenytoin (alters binding of T4 to TBG), rifampin, tranquilizers
Web. The Web. The Web. 9 May 2012. Lipking, Lawrence I, Stephen Greenblatt, and M. H. Abrams.
Other symptoms of Scopolamine and Atropine poisoning that Dimmesdale experiences are gait disturbances, tremors, and convulsions. Shafer mentions that Dimmesdale has a nervous “despondency in his [Dimmesdale’s] air…” (qtd...
acts to decrease the heart rate. It achieves this by assisting in the release of acetylcholine from the vagus nerve. Atropine on the other hand block acetylcholine receptors thus decreasing cardiac rate. By placing potassium directly on the heart, its extracellular concentration increases thus decreasing the resting potential. This brings the resting potential closer to threshold and weakens myocardial contractions. Epinephrine’s action increases the strength of contraction and of the cardiac rate. Caffeine is a stimulant that also increases the strength of contraction and of the cardiac rate. It inhibits phosphodiesterase that breaks down cyclic AMP thus causing an increase in cAMP levels. Nicotine actively binds to the nicotinic receptors causing stimulation of the parasympathetic ganglia.
Strychnine is a poisonous alkaloid, C21H22N2O2, obtained in colorless or white rhombic crystals. These have a bitter taste and melt at around 290( C (4 p.1). Alkaloids are any class of naturally occurring organic nitrogen containing bases, usually containing one or more of these nitrogen atoms in a ring of atoms called a cyclic system. Alkaloids are primarily found in plants and are predominant in flowering plant species. The function of alkaloids in plants is thought to be simply a waste product of the plants metabolic processes, but current research may suggest a specific biological function. This is evident in some plants as the levels of alkaloid increase just prior to seed formation and then drops off after the seed is ripe. This evidence suggests possible mechanisms of maturation and possible defense, against certain insect species (5 p.2). Strychnine, being an alkaloid, is slightly soluble in water, but is more soluble in alcohol and is released from its salts by alkalis. Many of the commercial alkaloids are found in the genus Strychnos.
Nizet TAC, Broeders ME AC, & Folgering HTM (2004). Tremor side effects of salbutamol, quantified by a laser pointer technique. Respiratory medicine,
Gut baths can be used to produce quantitative responses and convert those responses to chemical or electrical stimulations by the use of an isometric transducer and these stimulations are shows on a computer. Agonists are compounds that produce a response when administered to a particular tissue. The response that are recorded are directly proportional to the concentration of drug administered. Antagonists are compounds that interact with a set of receptors and form a complex, but no response is elicited. When an effective concentration of the antagonist is administered, this complex prevents the agonist from binding to the receptor and can therefore reduce the agonist response (Dale et al., 2012). The agonist, carbachol and antagonist, atropine are used to show the different responses that is has on a rat ileum. Carbachol is a cholinergic agonist as it binds to muscarinic and nicotinic receptors for acetylcholine and stimulates them, causing a smooth muscle contraction. It is not absorbed well in the gastrointestinal tract and does not cross the blood-brain barrier. Atropine is non-selective muscarinic receptor antagonist and is absorbed well in the gastrointestinal tract. It is a reversible competitive antagonist of the muscarinic acetylcholine receptors and blocks the effects of carbachol, the agonist occupancy at a given agonist concentration is reduced as the receptor can only accommodate one molecule at a time (Dale et al., 2012). The aim of
Ketamine is quick acting. You may know about what is transpiring, yet not able to move. It additionally causes memory issues. Later, you won't not have the capacity to recollect what happened while you were sedated. Ketamine can bring about these
Like those used to manage high blood pressure. An example is Metoprolol. It is a beta-1 selective drug that binds to the beta-1 adrenoceptors to block the adrenergic effect of adrenaline and noradrenaline, which is a G- protein signal transduction pathway (Pharmacotherapy, 2005). The cascade of events that happens leads to reduction in the heart rate and the strength of pumping this in turn reduces the cardiac output and thus the blood pressure. This effect is however, dose-dependent and an overdose could easily result in cardiac collapse.
It could also be used for other conditions as determined by your doctor. Sudafed in twelve-hour sustained release capsules are a decongestant. It works by reducing inflammation and constriction of blood vessels in the nasal passages, allowing you to breathe easier. Pseudoephedrine is a decongestant that shrinks body fluid vessels in the nasal passages. Increased blood vessels can cause nasal congestion. It is used to treat nasal congestion and sinus congestion or the tubes that drain fluid from your inner ears, called the Eustachian tubes. Precautions get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction to pseudoephedrine: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of the face, lips, tongue or throat. Stop using pseudoephedrine and call your doctor right away if you have a serious side effect or irregular heartbeat; severe dizziness or anxiety; bruising or bleeding, unusual weakness, fever, chills, body aches, flu symptoms; dangerously high blood pressure or severe headache, blurred vision, ringing in your ears, anxiety, confusion, chest pain, shortness of breath, irregular heartbeat,