"Valium" is ... Description, instruction, action, analogues

"Valium" is that for a preparation? You will find the answer to this question a little further. Also we will tell you about how this tool works, what properties are characteristic for it, how it should be taken and in what form it is produced.

Form, packaging and composition

Valium is a medicinal product that can be purchased in the form of an injection solution, as well as in the form of tablets. What is included in these tools?

In 1 ml of solution for injection contains 5 mg of diazepam. Such a drug goes on sale in 50 or 10 ampoules of dark glass with a volume of 2 ml, placed in cardboard packs.

As for the tablets, they can contain 10 or 5 mg of diazepam, as well as the following additional ingredients: corn starch, anhydrous lactose, calcium stearate, gelatinized starch, colorants.

"Valium" in tablet form is packed in cardboard packs that contain cell blisters.

Pharmacology of medicine

Valium is a medication that shows anxiolytic, muscle relaxant, sedative, hypnotic and anticonvulsant properties.

Before you tell us about the mechanism of action of the agent in question, you need to understand what it is.

The preparation "Valium" has the following patented name - "Diazepam". This drug belongs to the group of benzodiazepines and is of great importance in medicine.

Valium is a medication that, thanks to its anxiolytic activity, is able to stop internal anxiety, fear, anxiety and stress. Experts argue that "Diazepam" dose-dependent on the central nervous system. In other words, in small amounts (about 2-15 mg per day), this drug causes a stimulating effect, and in large (more than 15 mg per day) - sedative.

Features of the drug

What is remarkable about such a tool as Valium? The action (central muscle relaxant) of this drug is associated with a slowing of the polysynaptic reflexes in the spinal cord. Admission of this drug leads to a decrease in blood pressure, the expansion of coronary vessels, as well as increasing the resistance of the brain to hypoxia and an increase in the pain threshold of sensitivity.

Kinetics

The "Valium" medication, analogues of which are indicated below, is absorbed from the digestive tract (by oral intake). At the same time, absorption is 75%, and the maximum concentration is reached after 1.5 hours.

The biological transformation of this medicine occurs in the liver. In this case, active metabolites are formed with a half-life. When the medication is prescribed for infants, the effect is achieved after 30 hours, and for the elderly and adults after 100 and 48 hours, respectively. With liver pathologies, this indicator lengthens to 4 days.

This drug is excreted from the human body mainly by the kidneys (90%) in the form of conjugates, as well as in unchanged form (2%) and together with feces (8%).

Indications

At what diseases the patient can be appointed "Valium"? Experts say that this drug is indicated for admission under the following conditions:

• Spasms of the skeletal muscles with local injuries;
• Anxiety disorders;
• Myositis, arthritis, bursitis, pelvis-spondyloarthritis rheumatic, progressive polyarthritis chronic;
• tetanus;
• Arterial hypertension, dysphoria, stomach ulcer and duodenal ulcer (as an additional remedy), myocardial infarction;
• insomnia;
• Angina pectoris;
• Spastic conditions, including cerebral palsy, arthrosis with muscular tension of the skeleton and athetosis;
• Poisoning with medicines;
• Vertebral syndrome;
• Alcohol abstinence syndrome with such manifestations as anxiety, tension, agitation, tremor;
• Status epileptic, relief of epileptic seizures;
• Psychosomatic disorders in gynecology and obstetrics (for example, menopausal and menstrual, with gestosis, to facilitate labor activity);
• Eczema and other diseases, which are accompanied by irritability and itching;
• Meniere's disease ;
• Paranoid-hallucinatory states, motor excitements of various origins (in psychiatry and neurology);
• General anesthesia and premedication (for example, before surgical interventions and endoscopic manipulations).

Contraindications

When should not you use a medicine like Valium? The effect of such a drug will not be what you would like if you accept it:

• With hypersensitivity;
• Coma, shock;
• Acute alcohol intoxication;
• Acute forms of kidney and liver diseases;
• Myasthenia gravis;
• Angle-closure glaucoma;
• In childhood up to 6 months;
• In the period of breastfeeding and in the first trimester of pregnancy.

Medicinal preparation Valium: instructions for use

Appointment should only be an experienced specialist. For an adult patient, the oral dose should be 5-20 mg per day. This amount of medication is determined depending on the severity of the symptoms of the disease, as well as on the overall clinical picture.

The maximum possible single dose of the drug is not more than 10 mg. The course of therapy with this remedy in case of anxiety should last about 6 weeks. After this period, you should consult your doctor to get the minimum maintenance dosage.

Abolition of the drug in question is carried out gradually.

In urgent cases, this medication should be administered parenterally (intramuscularly or intravenously). In this case, a dose of 2-20 mg is used.

With intravenous infusion, the drug should be administered very slowly, at a rate not exceeding 0.5-1 ml per minute.

Adverse events

As with any medicine, taking this medication can cause negative reactions. They include the following:

• Bradycardia or hypotension;
• Decrease in concentration of attention and speed of reactions;
• Addiction to the medicine;
• Dizziness and headache;
• Development of paradoxical reactions in the form of anxiety, insomnia, hallucinations and seizures;
• Memory impairment (short-term);
• Adverse reactions at the site of administration;
• Motor disorders in the form of dysarthria and ataxia;
• Damage to the kidneys and liver, intestinal atony, decreased libido and potency (with prolonged use of the drug);
• Allergic reactions;
• Withdrawal syndrome;
• Decreased ability to work and muscle weakness.

With the appointment of this drug, it is very important for the patient to inform him about what this medication is. After all, the drug under consideration is a known psychotropic tranquilizer, which has a number of negative effects, among which addictive and withdrawal symptoms are particularly prominent.

The doctor prescribing this medicine is obliged to inform the patient of the possible harmful effects of the drug on his body, and also suggest other options for therapy.

An overdose of a medicine

Overdose of the drug under consideration is accompanied by such an unpleasant symptom as CNS depression. This phenomenon can be of varying severity, from drowsiness to coma. Also, when taking large doses of the drug in the patient, hypotension, confusion and respiratory depression are possible.

Treatment of such conditions, provided that the patient is conscious, provides for the induction of vomiting and the use of activated carbon. If the patient is unconscious, the stomach is washed with a probe, and symptomatic therapy is performed, vital signs are screened, and fluid is injected to increase diuresis.

To stop the excessive excitement of the patient, you can assign him barbiturates.

Interaction with other medical devices

Valium medication causes potentiation of the effects of alcohol, hypnotics, anticonvulsants, hypotensive and antihistamines, as well as neuroleptics, general anesthetics, tricyclic antidepressants, muscle relaxants and analgesics.

Psychostimulants and analeptics can significantly reduce the activity of the drug "Diazepam".

Antacids reduce the rate, but not the level of absorption of this remedy.

Such microsomal oxidation inhibitors as cimetidine, omeprazole, ketoconazole, fluoxetine and fluvoxamine alter the pharmacokinetics of the drug in question, and also increase the duration of its clinical effects.

"Rifampicin" reduces the concentration of "Diazepam" in the blood, and "Erythromycin" slows its metabolism in the liver.

Similar drugs

What can replace such a drug as Valium? Analogues in Russia are not sold in all pharmacies. Moreover, such drugs are only released after presentation of a medical prescription.

You can replace this medication with "Sibazon", "Diazepam" or "Diapama". However, do this only after consulting a doctor.

Cost of medicinal product

As it was said above, it is not possible to take medication "Valium Rosh" in Russia in every pharmacy. The cost of this medicine is about a thousand rubles (per one package).

The price of this product in the UK and other European countries is usually about two hundred and fifty pounds sterling per thousand tablets (10 milligrams).

To buy a drug in your city that meets all the requirements of safety and quality, experts recommend contacting the information desk where you will be provided with full information about its availability in pharmacies and the most favorable prices.

Comments of consumers about the drug

"Valium" is a rather popular drug among patients, which is used as an anxiolytic, myorelaxing, sedative, hypnotic and anticonvulsant drug. According to reviews of the majority of consumers, the medication in question is highly effective in various diseases, including epilepsy, sleep disorders, anxiety, and so on. Also its reception helps to weaken manifestations in the form of agitation, tremor and eliminate hallucinations.

However, there is no such means that would suit everyone. Some people who used this drug were unhappy. They note that the medicine begins to work only a week later. In addition, with prolonged use, the drug causes a large number of adverse reactions and leads to addiction.