In many people's medicine cabinets you can find Validol. This cheap but effective drug has a quick effect, helps relieve nervous tension, rapid heartbeat, and normalize blood pressure. Indications for the use of Validol are quite wide; it is used as a vasodilator, sedative, and analgesic. A wide spectrum of action and rapid onset of therapeutic effect make Validol in demand and popular for many years.
Form of production
The drug is available in several forms:
- pills,
- solution,
- drops,
- capsules.
The active ingredients are the same everywhere. The INN (international nonproprietary name) of the drug is levomenthol solution in menthylisovalerate. The composition of Validol depends on the form of production. Capsules contain 50 mg or 100 mg of active substance. The tablets contain 60 mg of levomenthol in menthylisovalerate. The solution is intended for drip administration and is produced in ampoules of 5 ml.
Description
The tablets are white or with a yellowish tint. Sometimes they are produced with grayish inclusions. The shape is flat-cylindrical, the medicine has a noticeable menthol smell.
Capsules with a gel-like shell, soft to the touch. Inside there is a clear oily liquid with a menthol smell.
The solution is produced in ampoules of 5 ml, has a thick oily consistency, and a strong menthol odor.
Important! Some believe that Validol contains peppermint and valerian. This is wrong. Some manufacturers do indeed include impurities in the drug, but there are very few of them.
Pharmacodynamics
The active component of the drug is obtained by dissolving menthol in isovaleric acid menthyl ester. When applied sublingually, that is, under the tongue, the active substance has an irritating effect on the receptors of the oral cavity that are sensitive to it. Thanks to this, a vasodilating, sedative effect is achieved, and blood pressure is reduced.
Menthyl isovalerate has a stimulating effect on the central nervous system, promotes the release of peptides and the mediator histamine. These substances are necessary to reduce pain and regulate vascular permeability. Under the influence of the active components of Validol, pain is reduced, blood circulation is improved, nervous tension goes away, and the process of natural falling asleep is facilitated. The therapeutic effect after resorption of the tablet occurs within 5 minutes.
Validol dilates blood vessels, restores heart rhythm
Indications for use
What is Validol needed for? The drug is used for various diseases associated with cardiovascular pathologies and conditions in patients caused by excessive emotional overload and nervous tension.
Validol acts quickly enough, this allows it to be used to treat the following diseases:
- as a complex component during attacks of angina pectoris, tachycardia to reduce heart palpitations;
- for the treatment of functional cardiology;
- hysterical states, neuroses;
- for the treatment of neurocircular dystonia;
- as an aid during a hangover;
- to reduce headaches;
- treatment of manifestations of toxicosis in pregnant women;
- with cramps of the limbs.
When considering the question of what Validol helps with, one cannot ignore the fact that the medicine is often used among patients with kinetosis. The use of Validol for sea and air sickness has an antiemetic effect and relieves nausea.
Features of use for concomitant pathologies
for headaches caused by the use of nitrates (they provoke dilation of intracranial vessels and, accordingly, a local increase in pressure), Validol successfully helps;- this drug enhances the sedative effect of psychotropic drugs (there is a danger of developing apatho-abulic disorders), opiates (a possible fatal complication is depression of the respiratory center until breathing stops completely), anesthesia (there is a risk of transition to a coma);
- in the presence of a hangover, taking Validol will significantly aggravate the existing symptoms;
- Validol has the ability to lower blood pressure (due to its calming and vasodilating effects), but it should not be used to prevent hypertensive crises;
- if the patient receives drug therapy for hypertension, it is necessary to take into account the ability of Validol to potentiate the effect of antihypertensive drugs (there is a danger of iatrogenic hypotension - a provoked decrease in pressure);
- during pregnancy, the drug can be used after consultation with a doctor in the case when the expected positive effect exceeds the possible negative effect of the drug on the fetus;
- During lactation, Validol can be used, but with caution, since active release of this medication into milk is not observed during feeding, but extensive clinical studies have not been conducted;
- Alcohol and Valocordin are not compatible.
Alcohol initially has a dilating effect on the blood vessels, but eventually they spasm. Such a sharp change in the tone of the walls of arterioles and venules can provoke an attack of arrhythmia. During heavy drinking, frequent changes in the volume of the bloodstream can lead to serious consequences (stroke, asystole - lack of pulse).
Contraindications
In most cases, the drug is well tolerated by patients, side effects are rare. Contraindications for Validol are few; they mainly relate to an alcohol solution of menthol and are of the following nature:
- child's age under 14 years;
- the drug in the form of drops is prohibited for patients with alcohol dependence;
- individual intolerance to the active or auxiliary substances of the product;
- severe hypotension;
- Validol with glucose is not prescribed to patients suffering from diabetes.
Particular caution should be taken when prescribing the drug to women while pregnant and breastfeeding.
Important! Doctors do not recommend taking Validol if signs of myocardial infarction appear, since the drug can smooth out the symptoms and complicate the diagnosis.
conclusions
Validol is a menthol-based drug that has been prescribed by therapists and cardiologists for decades. Modern experts question its effectiveness, comparing it with placebo.
Validol does not have a pronounced effect, and as a preventive measure for increasing the area of necrosis during myocardial infarction, it will be ineffective. However, in case of minor functional disorders of the heart caused by overstrain of the nervous system, this drug has the necessary sedative and vasodilating effect in sufficient quantities.
Analogues of Validol: Corvalment, Lily of the valley-valerian drops.
Side effects
Side effects of the drug and overdose of Validol are quite rare. This is evidenced by many years of practice and positive reviews from patients. Sometimes patients experience nausea, lacrimation, stomach pain, dizziness, and allergic manifestations. As a rule, these signs go away on their own after discontinuation of the drug and do not require special treatment. In rare cases, gastric lavage and hemodialysis are required.
Taking Validol incorrectly can cause headaches and other side effects.
Symptoms of an overdose of Validol include:
- nausea, vomiting;
- increased salivation and lacrimation;
- a sharp drop in pressure;
- headache and dizziness;
- cardiopalmus;
- vascular collapse.
An allergic reaction can manifest itself in the form of nasal congestion, conjunctivitis, difficulty breathing, cold sticky sweat, and decreased blood pressure.
Since the medicine is taken under the tongue, gastric lavage is not advisable. First aid is to drink plenty of clean water, because the drug is excreted in the urine.
Directions for use and dosage
How to take Validol of various types of release? The most common form of medication, especially among older patients, is Validol tablets. It is used to improve heart function, reduce blood pressure, and relieve heart pain. If negative symptoms occur, the tablet is placed under the tongue and slowly dissolved. Regular use of the drug can only be prescribed by a specialist. The instructions for using validol in capsules are the same as the method of taking tablets. The action of Validol begins within a few minutes.
How much Validol can you take per day? You can take 4-6 tablets or capsules per day.
To take drops, you need to drop 4-6 drops of the product onto refined sugar, place it in your mouth, and hold it under your tongue until dissolved. There is no need to take the medicine.
How to take Validol correctly
Before using the drug, you need to make sure that there are no contraindications and that allergies will not appear.
Capsules and tablets should be placed under the tongue and held until the medicine is completely absorbed. You can take 1 tablet or 1 capsule at a time. 3-4 doses per day are allowed. The maximum permissible dose per day is 12 capsules or 10 tablets. The duration of the treatment course should not exceed 10 days. If no result is observed after taking it, then you should consider taking other medications.
Special Recommendations
Validol with glucose should not be taken by patients suffering from any form of diabetes. Such patients are also prohibited from using drops on a piece of refined sugar.
It is not always recommended to take Validol for heart pain. Chest pain, headache and some other signs may indicate the onset of myocardial infarction. Validol can smooth out the symptoms, and the condition will not be diagnosed in a timely manner.
The drug has a relaxing effect on the central nervous system, so its use among people whose work activity requires increased concentration should be limited.
It is important to follow the special instructions of the drug
The manufacturer of the product recommends that you first consult a doctor before using the medicine. This will help eliminate contraindications and prevent side effects.
People with vegetative-vascular dystonia and other diseases characterized by low blood pressure should take the drug very carefully, as it can further reduce blood pressure.
Adverse reactions and overdose
Due to individual intolerance to the components, an allergic reaction may occur, manifested by a rash, itching or hives.
If you take the medicine in excessive doses over a long period, there may be a deterioration in the condition, accompanied by nausea, dizziness, and watery eyes. Such signs are not dangerous and disappear immediately as soon as the dose is reduced to an acceptable value. Or you can stop taking it for a while.
An overdose may lower blood pressure or increase the likelihood of unwanted reactions.
An overdose can enhance the good and bad effects of taking the drug. There may be deterioration in heart function, severe pain in the head, nausea followed by vomiting, agitation, and suppression of the functions of the central nervous system.
In this case, it is advisable to begin symptomatic therapy.
Comparison with other drugs
Patients are often interested in which is better – Validol or Corvalol. Some people are interested in the question, which product should be preferred, Nitroglycerin or Validol? Doctors unanimously say that choosing medications on your own is not recommended. Each product has a specific effect and must be used strictly as prescribed by a specialist. Each of these drugs has a similar effect. This is what gives rise to so many questions. Be that as it may, it is impossible to accurately answer which of the remedies is better. The doctor selects the drug individually for the patient, based on his condition and diagnosis.
Analogs
If the patient cannot take Validol, he may consider taking analogues.
These include:
Kratal. It is considered an expensive drug. It has an antioxidant, cardiotonic and antihypoxic effect.
Tonginal. It is also an expensive analogue. It has a complex homeopathic effect.
Pumpan. Available in the form of solution and tablets. Has metabolic, cardiotonic effects. Helps normalize heart rhythm and maintain normal blood pressure.
Instenon. The action of the drug is aimed at stabilizing blood circulation in the brain and improving brain metabolism.
Use during pregnancy and lactation
During the first three months of pregnancy, the medicine is often prescribed to women to reduce the manifestations of early toxicosis. The drug helps eliminate nausea, excessive gas formation and salivation.
The use of the medicine during this period should only be carried out with a doctor's prescription. It is recommended to carefully monitor pulse and blood pressure.
During pregnancy, the drug is prescribed very carefully
During breastfeeding, the use of tablets, capsules and any other form should be avoided, since the active components of the medicine penetrate into the mother's milk and therefore reach the baby. Validol during lactation is indicated only if the benefit outweighs the risk.
Drug substitutes
The Radar Directory includes the following Validol Analogs:
- Cormenthol - has a similar effect, is available in the form of capsules, which are intended for use under the tongue. Indications for use: neuroses, high blood pressure, hysteria, antiemetic for sea and air sickness;
- Corvalol is a combined antispasmodic, sedative medicine used for various cardiovascular pathologies. The drug is available in capsules and drop form. Contains alpha-bromoisovaleric acid ethyl ester, sodium phenobarbital, peppermint oil and other components;
- Riboxin is a drug with a metabolic effect, one of the precursors of ATP. Riboxin is prescribed for diseases of the heart and blood vessels, for the treatment of coronary artery disease, myocarditis, heart defects and other conditions. The product is produced in the form of tablets, capsules, solution for injection;
- Corvalment – has the international name Corvalmentum. The therapeutic effect of this drug is due to the menthol included in its composition. The drug is used for the symptomatic treatment of angina pectoris, neuroses, hysteria and other conditions. Corvalment has a sedative, vasodilator, and mild hypnotic effect.
Only a few analogues of Validol are described above. The list of drugs that have a similar effect is very extensive. To prescribe one or another remedy, you should consult a doctor.
Validol (tablets)
Dosage form
Sublingual tablets
Composition per tablet:
Active substance
:
Levomenthol solution in menthyl isovalerate – 0.06 g
Excipients
:
Sucrose (sugar) – 1.158 g
Calcium stearate monohydrate – 0.05 g
Description
Round tablets of a flat-cylindrical shape, with a score on one side and a chamfer, white with a yellowish tint with grayish inclusions, with a characteristic odor.
Pharmacotherapeutic group
Coronodilating agent of reflex action.
ATX code: C01EX
Pharmacological properties
It has a sedative effect and has a moderate reflex vasodilator effect due to irritation of sensitive nerve endings. Stimulates the production and release of enkephalins, endorphins and a number of other peptides, histamine, kinins (due to irritation of mucosal receptors), which are actively involved in the regulation of vascular permeability and the formation of pain. When administered sublingually, the therapeutic effect occurs on average within 5 minutes, with up to 70% of the drug released within 3 minutes.
Pharmacokinetics
When administered sublingually, levomenthol is absorbed from the oral mucosa, metabolized in the liver and excreted by the kidneys in the form of glucuronides.
Indications for use
Functional cardialgia, neuroses, and also as an antiemetic for sea and air sickness.
Contraindications
Hypersensitivity to the components of the drug, sucrase/isomaltase deficiency, fructose intolerance, glucose-galactose malabsorption, age under 18 years (there are no data on the effectiveness and safety of the drug in children).
Carefully
Diabetes mellitus (the drug contains sugar).
Use during pregnancy and breastfeeding
Prescription of the drug during pregnancy and breastfeeding is possible if the expected benefit to the mother outweighs the potential risk to the fetus and child.
Directions for use and doses
Validol is prescribed to adults, 1 tablet under the tongue until it is completely absorbed. Take 1 tablet 2-3 times a day. The frequency and duration of administration is determined depending on the effectiveness of treatment. If the therapeutic effect is absent or insufficiently pronounced within the next 5-10 minutes after taking the drug, you should consult a doctor to prescribe another therapy.
Side effect
Nausea, lacrimation, and dizziness may occur. When the drug is discontinued, these side effects usually go away on their own. Allergic reactions may develop (skin rash, itching, angioedema). If side effects not described in these instructions occur, you should stop taking the drug and inform your doctor.
Overdose
Symptoms
: headache, nausea, agitation, cardiac dysfunction, sharp decrease in blood pressure, depression of the central nervous system.
Treatment
: drug withdrawal, symptomatic therapy.
Interaction with other drugs
When used simultaneously with drugs that depress the central nervous system, it enhances the effect of the latter.
Simultaneous use of the drug with nitrates reduces the headache that occurs when using them.
special instructions
Concomitant use of alcohol is not recommended. Use with caution in patients with diabetes mellitus (the drug contains sucrose). The amount of sucrose in 1 tablet corresponds to 0.09 XE (bread units).
Impact on the ability to drive vehicles and machinery
When taking the drug, care must be taken when performing potentially hazardous activities that require increased concentration and speed of psychomotor reactions (driving vehicles, working with moving mechanisms, working as a dispatcher, operator).
Release form
Sublingual tablets 60 mg.
6, 10 tablets in a blister pack made of polyvinyl chloride film and aluminum foil.
2, 3, 4, 5 blister packs together with instructions for use are placed in a pack of boxed cardboard or chrome-ersatz cardboard.
For hospitals: 50, 100, 200 blister packs along with an equal number of instructions for use are placed in corrugated cardboard boxes.
Storage conditions
In a dry place, protected from light, at a temperature not exceeding 25 ° C.
Keep out of the reach of children.
Best before date
3 years.
Do not use after the expiration date.
Vacation conditions
Over the counter.
Patient reviews
Svetlana, Tula “Validol is a salvation for me and my husband. We are both heart patients, so attacks of tachycardia occur quite often. We use Validol in capsules. It seems to me that this form of release is the most effective. When unpleasant symptoms appear, I put the tablet under my tongue and try to lie down. In terms of money, the drug is also suitable for us.”
Ivan, Ryazan “I’ve been using Validol for many years. The advantages include accessibility, quick effect, ease of use. I don’t see any downsides to the drug. In terms of price-quality ratio, this is an excellent product. Of course, the drug will not help with serious pathologies. But it perfectly relieves attacks of arrhythmia and tachycardia.”
Marina, Tolyatti “I always carry Validol with me in my bag in the summer heat. It helps me relieve attacks of lightheadedness and nausea during hot periods. I don’t advise anyone to self-medicate, but you can still have a tablet of this remedy with you. I also heard that this medicine helps with motion sickness. It is relatively harmless. It is even prescribed to pregnant women.”
Anastasia, Perm “I recently felt an unpleasant pulling sensation in the heart area. By evening the pain only grew, but there was no way to go to the hospital. I took Corvalol drops, but they didn’t help. I remembered that my grandmother often takes Validol for such symptoms. I found the pills in her medicine cabinet and put one under her tongue. After 10 minutes everything went away. The pain did not recur. Although the product is cheap, it works great.”
