Vasodilators

Histamine or histamin is an organic nitrogenous compound involved in local immune responses communication, as well as regulating physiological functions in the gut and acting as a neurotransmitter for the brain, spinal cord, and uterus. Discovered in 1910, histamine has been considered a local hormone (autocoid) because it is produced without involvement of the classic endocrine glands; however, in recent years, histamine has been recognized as a central neurotransmitter. Histamine is involved in the inflammatory response and has a central role as a mediator of itching. As part of an immune re

Adenosine (symbol A) is an organic compound that occurs widely in nature in the form of diverse derivatives. The molecule consists of an adenine attached to a ribose via a β-N9-glycosidic bond. Adenosine is one of the four nucleoside building blocks of RNA (and its derivative deoxyadenosine is a building block of DNA), which are essential for all life on Earth. Its derivatives include the energy carriers adenosine mono-, di-, and triphosphate, also known as AMP/ADP/ATP. Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) is pervasive in signal transduction. Adenosine is used as an intravenous medication for

Papaverine (Latin papaver, "poppy") is an opium alkaloid antispasmodic drug, used primarily in the treatment of visceral spasms and vasospasms (especially those involving the intestines, heart, or brain), occasionally in the treatment of erectile dysfunction and acute mesenteric ischemia. While it is found in the opium poppy, papaverine differs in both structure and pharmacological action from the analgesic morphine and its derivatives (such as codeine).

Minoxidil, sold under the brand names Loniten and Rogaine among others, is a medication used for the treatment of high blood pressure and pattern hair loss. It is an antihypertensive and a vasodilator. It is available as a generic medication by prescription in oral tablet form and over-the-counter as a topical liquid or foam.

chemical compound

Yohimbine, also known as quebrachine, is an indole alkaloid derived from the bark of the African tree Pausinystalia johimbe (yohimbe) and from the bark of the unrelated South American tree Aspidosperma quebracho-blanco. It is a veterinary drug used to reverse xylazine.

Prazosin, sold under the brand name Minipress among others, is a medication used to treat high blood pressure, symptoms of an enlarged prostate, and nightmares related to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). It is an α1 blocker. It is a less preferred treatment of high blood pressure. Other uses may include heart failure and Raynaud syndrome. It is taken by mouth.

thumb|260px|right|Betahistine(12mg) Betahistine, sold under the brand name Serc among others, is an anti-vertigo medication. It is commonly prescribed for balance disorders or to alleviate vertigo symptoms. It was first registered in Europe in 1970 for the treatment of Ménière's disease, but current evidence does not support its efficacy in treating it.

Hexacyanoferrate whose one cyanide group is replaced by a nitroso group

Isoprenaline, also known as isoproterenol and sold under the brand name Isuprel among others, is a sympathomimetic medication which is used in the treatment of acute bradycardia (slow heart rate), heart block, and rarely for asthma, among other indications. It is used by injection into a vein, muscle, fat, or the heart, by inhalation, and in the past under the tongue or into the rectum.

Cilostazol, sold under the brand name Pletal among others, is a medication used to help the symptoms of intermittent claudication in peripheral vascular disease. It may also be used to prevent stroke. It is taken by mouth.

Pentoxifylline, also known as oxpentifylline, is a xanthine derivative used as a drug to treat muscle pain in people with peripheral artery disease. It was approved for medical use in 1984 and is available as generic and sold under many brand names worldwide like Trental.

Poppers are recreational drugs belonging to the alkyl nitrite family of chemical compounds. When fumes from these substances are inhaled, they act as potent vasodilators, producing mild euphoria, warmth, and dizziness. Most effects have a rapid onset and are short-acting. Its recreational use is believed to be potentially dangerous for people with heart problems, anaemia, or glaucoma. Reported adverse effects include fainting, retinal toxicity, and vision loss.

Diazoxide, sold under the brand name Proglycem among others, is a medication used to treat low blood sugar due to a number of specific causes. This includes islet cell tumors that cannot be removed and leucine sensitivity. It can also be used in refractory cases of sulfonylurea toxicity. It is taken by mouth.

Phentolamine, sold under the brand name Regitine among others, is a non-selective α-adrenergic antagonist.

Milrinone, sold under the brand name Primacor among others, is a pulmonary vasodilator used in patients who have heart failure. It is a phosphodiesterase 3 inhibitor that works to increase the heart's contractility and decrease pulmonary vascular resistance. Milrinone also works to vasodilate which helps alleviate increased pressures (afterload) on the heart, thus improving its pumping action. While it has been used in people with heart failure for many years, studies suggest that milrinone may exhibit some negative side effects that have caused some debate about its use clinically.

Vinpocetine (ethyl apovincaminate), sold under the brand name Cavinton among others, is a synthetic derivative of the vinca alkaloid vincamine, differing by the removal of a hydroxyl group and by being the ethyl rather than the methyl ester of the underlying carboxylic acid. Vincamine is extracted from either the seeds of Voacanga africana or the leaves of Vinca minor (lesser periwinkle).

Heptaminol is an amino alcohol which is classified as a cardiac stimulant (positive inotropic action). It also increases coronary blood flow along with mild peripheral vasoconstriction. It is sometimes used in the treatment of low blood pressure, particularly orthostatic hypotension as it is a potent positive inotrope (improving cardiac contraction).

Buflomedil, sold under the brand name Loftyl, is a vasoactive drug used to treat claudication or the symptoms of peripheral arterial disease. It is currently not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in the United States.

Tolazoline is a non-selective competitive α2-adrenergic receptor antagonist. It is a vasodilator that is used to treat spasms of peripheral blood vessels (as in acrocyanosis). It has also been used (in conjunction with sodium nitroprusside) successfully as an antidote to reverse the severe peripheral vasoconstriction which can occur as a result of overdose with certain 5-HT2A receptor agonist drugs such as 25I-NBOMe, DOB, and Bromodragonfly. ==History== Tolazoline was first used in the 1980s as an alternative reversal agent for xylazine. ==Use== Tolazoline is used in large animal medicine to r

Nicorandil is a vasodilator drug used to treat angina, which is chest pain that results from episodes of transient myocardial ischemia. Angina can be caused by diseases such as atherosclerosis, coronary artery disease, and aortic stenosis.

Amrinone, also known as inamrinone, and sold as Inocor, is a pyridine phosphodiesterase 3 inhibitor. It is a drug that may improve the prognosis in patients with congestive heart failure. Amrinone has been shown to increase the contractions initiated in the heart by high-gain calcium induced calcium release (CICR). The positive inotropic effect of amrinone is mediated by the selective enhancement of high-gain CICR, which contributes to the contraction of myocytes by phosphorylation through cAMP dependent protein kinase A (PKA) and Ca2+ calmodulin kinase pathways.

Pimobendan (INN, or pimobendane), sold under the brand name Vetmedin among others, is a veterinary medication. It is a calcium sensitizer and a selective inhibitor of phosphodiesterase 3 (PDE3) with positive inotropic and vasodilator effects.

Ifenprodil, sold under the brand names Cerocral, Dilvax, and Vadilex, is a cerebral vasodilator that has been marketed in some countries, including in Japan, Hong Kong, and France. It is currently under development for treatment of a variety of additional indications.

Ketanserin, sold under the brand name Sufrexal, is an antihypertensive agent which is used to treat arterial hypertension and vasospastic disorders. It is also used in scientific research as an antiserotonergic agent in the study of the serotonin system; specifically, the 5-HT2 receptor family. The drug is taken orally.

Molsidomine (trade names Corvasal, Corvaton and many others) is an orally active, short acting vasodilating drug used to treat angina pectoris. Molsidomine is metabolized in the liver to the active metabolite linsidomine. Linsidomine is an unstable compound that releases nitric oxide (NO) upon decay as the actual vasodilating compound.

chemical compound

Naftidrofuryl, also known as nafronyl and sold under the brand name Praxilene among others, is a serotonin 5-HT2 receptor antagonist which is used as a vasodilator in the treatment of peripheral and cerebral vascular disorders. It is taken orally.

Isoxsuprine (used as isoxsuprine hydrochloride) is a drug used as a vasodilator in humans (under the trade name Duvadilan) and equines. Isoxsuprine is a β2 adrenoreceptor agonist that causes direct relaxation of uterine and vascular smooth muscle via β2 receptors.

Regadenoson, sold under the brand name Lexiscan among others, is an A2A adenosine receptor agonist that is a coronary vasodilator that is commonly used in pharmacologic stress testing. It produces hyperemia quickly and maintains it for a duration that is useful for radionuclide myocardial perfusion imaging. The selective nature of the drug makes it preferable to other stress agents such as adenosine, which are less selective and therefore cause more side-effects.

Dihydroergocristine is an ergot alkaloid. Alongside dihydroergocornine and dihydroergocryptine, it is one of the components of ergoloid mesylates.

Vinburnine (or eburnamonine, Vincamone) is a vasodilator. Vincamone is a vinca alkaloid and a metabolite of vincamine.

A nitrovasodilator is a pharmaceutical agent that causes vasodilation (widening of blood vessels) by donation of nitric oxide (NO), and is mostly used for the treatment and prevention of angina pectoris.

Bamethan is a vasodilator.

Oxyfedrine, sold under the brand names Ildamen and Myofedrin among others, is a sympathomimetic agent and coronary vasodilator which is used in the treatment of coronary heart disease, angina pectoris, and acute myocardial infarction. It is taken by mouth or intravenously.

Synthetic, cannabinoid-like compound

Cromakalim (INN) is a potassium channel-opening vasodilator. The active isomer is levcromakalim. It acts on ATP-sensitive potassium channels and so causes membrane hyperpolarization. It can be used to treat hypertension as it will relax vascular smooth muscle to lower blood pressure. Hyperpolarisation of smooth muscle cell membranes pulls their membrane potential away from the threshold, so making it more difficult to excite them and thereby cause relaxation.

chemical compound

Gapicomine (INN) is a coronary vasodilator. It has been withdrawn from the market in the countries it was used in.

Xanthinol is a drug prepared from theophylline used as a vasodilator. It is most often used as the salt with niacin (nicotinic acid), known as xanthinol nicotinate. It is a derivative of vitamin B3 (niacin), and can be found in a wide array dietary supplements. It has been marketed to increase the brain metabolism of glucose and ability to obtain ATP. Xanthinol is also used as an agent to reduced cholesterol as it is a vasodilator. It was approved as a medication in Canada in 1998, but it has since had its classification as a medication withdrawn. Xanthinol is indicated to improve cerebrovascu

Trapidil is used in the treatment of chronic stable angina pectoris. It is currently marketed in Japan under the brand name Rocornal.

Quazinone (Dozonone) is a cardiotonic and vasodilator drug which was developed and marketed in the 1980s for the treatment of heart disease. It acts as a selective PDE3 inhibitor. It is no longer available.

Prenylamine (Segontin) is a calcium channel blocker of the amphetamine chemical class that was used as a vasodilator in the treatment of angina pectoris. It produces amphetamine as a metabolite.

chemical compound

Linsidomine (3-morpholinosydnonimine or SIN-1) is a vasodilator. It is a metabolite of the antianginal drug molsidomine and acts by releasing NO from the endothelial cells nonenzymatically. It also hyperpolarizes the cell membrane through influencing the sodium-potassium pump and thereby rendering it less responsive to adrenergic stimulation. Linsidomine injection at a dose of 1 mg produces usable erection in about 70% of patients and full erection in up to 50% of patients. Linsidomine does not appear to be associated with priapism.

Pentifylline (marketed as Cosaldon) is a vasodilator.

Benziodarone is a vasodilator.

Butalamine is a vasodilator.

Imolamine (INN, BAN; brand names Angolon, Angoril, Circuline, Irri-Cor, Irrigor, Coremax) is a coronary vasodilator which is used in the treatment of angina pectoris and as a local anesthetic.

Dilazep is a vasodilator that acts as an adenosine reuptake inhibitor.

chemical compound

Flosequinan is a quinolone vasodilator that was discovered and developed by Boots UK and was sold for about a year under the trade name Manoplax. It had been approved in 1992 in the US and UK to treat people with heart failure who could not tolerate ACE inhibitors or digitalis.

Visnadine (or visnadin) is a natural vasodilator. It was first isolated from bishop's weed (Ammi visnaga), a plant indigenous to the Mediterranean region which has been used for centuries in Egypt as a spasmolytic.

Etafenone is a vasodilator which has been used as an antianginal agent.

Carbocromen (chromonar) is a vasodilator. It was used as a coronary dilator between 1963 and 1966.

Tezosentan is a non-selective ETA and ETB receptor antagonist. It acts as a vasodilator and was designed by Actelion as a therapy for patients with acute heart failure. However, studies showed that tezosentan did not improve dyspnea or reduce the risk of fatal or nonfatal cardiovascular events.

Hexobendine is a vasodilator that acts as an adenosine reuptake inhibitor.