Minoxidil Vasodilators

Minoxidil Vasodilator/K channel opener Coronary arteries (primarily right Medial smooth muscle cell Mesfm et al. (1989)... 

Piperidines. A significant use of piperidine (18) has been ia the manufacture of vulcanization accelerators, eg, thiuram disulfide [120-54-7] (115) (see Rubber chemicals). Mepiquat dichloride [24307-26-4] the dimethyl quaternary salt of (18), is used as a plant growth regulator for cotton (qv). Piperidine is used to make vasodilators such as dipyridamole [58-32-2] (116) and minoxidil [38304-91-5] (117), and diuretics such as etozoline [73-09-6] (118). 

Vasodilators are a group of dtugs, which relax the smooth muscle cells of the blood vessels and lead to an increased local tissue blood flow, a reduced arterial pressure and a reduced central venous pressure. Vasodilators reduce the cardiac pre-load as well as after-load and thereby reduce cardiac work. They are used in a variety of conditions including hypertension, cardiac failure and treatment/prevention of angina pectoris. Major groups are Ca2+-channel blockers (e.g. dihydropyridines), NO-donators (e.g. organic nitrates), K+-channel openers (minoxidil), phosphodiesterase inhibitors (e.g. sildenafil), Rho-kinase inhibitors (e.g. Y27632) or substances with unknown mechanism of action (e.g. hydralazine). Inhibitors of the... 

Vasodilating drugs—for example, hydralazine (Apresoline) and minoxidil (Loniten)... 

ADMINISTERING VASODILATING DRUGS The nurse must carefully monitor the patient receiving minoxidil because the drug increases the heart rata The primary care provider is notified if any of the following occur ... 

Direct Vasodilators Isosorbide dinitrate 20 mg and hydralazine 37.5 (BiDil) 1-2 tablets three times a day Minoxidil (Loniten) Hydralazine Heart failure (isosorbide dinitrate + hydralazine in African-Americans) A-HeFT66 Edema (minoxidil) Tachycardia Lupus-like syndrome (hydralazine) ... 

The answer is d. (Hardman, pp 794-795.) Hydralazine, minoxidil, diazoxide, and sodium nitroprusside are all directly acting vasodilators used to treat hypertension. Because hydralazine, minoxidil, nifedipine, and diazoxide relax arteriolar smooth muscle more than smooth muscle in venules, the effect on venous capacitance is negligible. Sodium nitroprusside, which affects both arterioles and venules, does not increase cardiac output, a feature that enhances the utility of sodium nitroprusside in the management of hypertensive crisis associated with MI. 

Hydralazine and minoxidil cause direct arteriolar smooth muscle relaxation. Compensatory activation of baroreceptor reflexes results in increased sympathetic outflow from the vasomotor center, producing an increase in heart rate, cardiac output, and renin release. Consequently, the hypotensive effectiveness of direct vasodilators diminishes over time unless the patient is also taking a sympathetic inhibitor and a diuretic. 

Minoxidil is a more potent vasodilator than hydralazine, and the compensatory increases in heart rate, cardiac output, renin release, and sodium retention are more dramatic. Severe sodium and water retention may precipitate congestive heart failure. Minoxidil also causes reversible hyper-... 

Another potent peripheral vasodilator with hypotensive activity is minoxidil (U-10,858, XXXI). The drug was developed at the Upjohn Corporation, apparently as a follow-up of a previous clinical candidate, diallylmelamine -N-oxide (U-20,388, XXXII). The amine precursor, diallylmelamine (U-7720, XXXIII), is active in rats and dogs but not in man because the active... 

Clinical reports on minoxidil indicate that the drug is effective, particularly in cases which are refractory to other drugs (21. 22). It has the typical side-effects of a vasodilator and co-administration of a diuretic and a p-adrenergic blocker is recommended in many of the reported studies (21-28). 

In multidrug therapy, it is necessary to consider which agents rationally complement each other. A p-blocker (bradycardia, cardiodepression due to sympathetic blockade) can be effectively combined with nifedipine (reflex tachycardia), but obviously not with verapamil (bradycardia, cardiodepression). Monotherapy with ACE inhibitors (p. 124) produces an adequate reduction of blood pressure in 50% of patients the response rate is increased to 90% by combination with a (thiazide) diuretic. When vasodilators such as dihydralazine or minoxidil (p. 118) are given, p-blockers would serve to prevent reflex tachycardia, and diuretics to counteract fluid retention. 

Minoxidil is a peripheral vasodilator that directly relaxes vascular smooth musculature, thus, lowering systolic and diastolic pressure. Its action is linked to the activation of calcium channels. Open calcium channels cause hyperpolarization of smooth muscle cells, which in turn, reduces the flow of calcium ions into the cell, which is necessary for supporting vascular tonicity. However, when taking minoxidil, tachycardia, elevated renin secretion, and water and sodium ion retention all appear simultaneously with hypotension. Because of potentially serious side effects, it is used only for severe hypertension that does not respond to treatment with other drugs, and absolutely in combination with two other antihypertensive drugs. A synonym of this drug is loniten. 

Pharmacology Minoxidil is a direct-acting peripheral vasodilator. Minoxidil elicits a reduction of peripheral arteriolar resistance. The exact mechanism of action on the vascular smooth muscle is unknown. 

Minoxidil is a potent vasodilator predominantly with respect to resistance vessels. Vasodilatation is brought about, at least in part, by the opening of potassium channels, thus causing hyperpolarisation... 

Sodium nitroprusside (SNP) is both a venous and an arterial vasodilator. An important part of its vasodilator action is caused by the release of nitric oxide (NO), similarly as for the organic nitrates. SNP can only be administered via the intravenous route. It is a rapidly and short acting vasodilator. It has been used in the treatment of hypertensive emergencies and in the management of myocardial ischaemia. In spite of its vasodilator action it hardly influences heart rate, in contrast to hydralazine and minoxidil. The dosage of SNP should not be higher than 3 pg/kg/min within 48 h, in order to avoid the rise of cyanide ions and thiocyanate in the blood. 

Other vasodilators, such as diazoxide and minoxidil, cause dilation of blood vessels by activating potassium channels in vascular smooth muscle. An increase in potassium conductance results in hyperpolarization of the cell membrane, which will cause relaxation of vascular smooth muscle. 

This chapter describes four vasodilators in detail. Two of these agents, hydralazine and minoxidil, are effective orally and are used for the chronic treatment of primary hypertension. The other two drugs, diazoxide and sodium nitroprusside, are effective only when administered intravenously. They are generally used in the treatment of hypertensive emergencies or during surgery. 

Minoxidil (Loniten) is an orally effective vasodilator. It is more potent and longer acting than hydralazine and does not accumulate significantly in patients with renal insufficiency. It depends on in vivo metabolism by hepatic enzymes to produce an active metabolite, minoxidil sulfate. Minoxidil sulfate activates potassium channels, resulting in hyperpolarization of vascular smooth muscle and relaxation of the blood vessel. 

The hemodynamic effects of diazoxide are similar to those of hydralazine and minoxidil. It produces direct relaxation of arteriolar smooth muscle with little effect on capacitance beds. Since it does not impair cardiovascular reflexes, orthostasis is not a problem. Its administration is, however, associated with a reflex increase in cardiac output that partially counters its antihypertensive effects. Propranolol and other -blockers potentiate the vasodilating properties of the drug. Diazoxide has no direct action on the heart. Although renal blood flow and glomerular filtration may fall transiently, they generally return to predrug levels within an hour. 

In contrast to hydralazine, minoxidil, and diazoxide, sodium nitroprusside relaxes venules as well as arterioles. Thus, it decreases both peripheral vascular resistance and venous return to the heart. This action limits the increase in cardiac output that normally follows vasodilator therapy. Sodium nitroprusside does not inhibit sympathetic reflexes, so heart rate may increase following its administration even though cardiac output is not... 

C. The vasodilation caused by bradykinin, histamine, hydralazine, and acetylcholine depends in part upon nitric oxide release from the endothelium. Minoxidil activates K+ channels, which results in vascular smooth muscle hyperpolarization and thereby relaxation. 

Minoxidil, an antihypertensive agent, produces arteriolar vasodilation by an unknown mechanism. In limited clinical studies, minoxidil increases penile rigidity and has been used in the long-term treatment of organic impotence. 

From a clinical perspective, some of these PCO classes have attracted initial attention. Diazoxide and minoxidil have been evaluated as antihypertensive agents. These PCOs open K+ channels in the plasma membranes of vascular smooth muscle cells, causing vascular vasodilation, thereby lowering blood pressure. Cromakalim has been investigated as a smooth muscle bronchodilator for the treatment of human asthma. Nicorandil was launched in Japan in 1984 for the treatment of angina because of its perceived ability to promote vasodilation of coronary arteries. Developmental work on these and other PCOs is continuing for indications ranging from hypertension, asthma, urinary incontinence, psychosis, epilepsy, pain, and alopecia (hair loss). 

This class of drugs includes the oral vasodilators, hydralazine and minoxidil, which are used for long-term outpatient therapy of hypertension the parenteral vasodilators, nitroprusside, diazoxide, and fenoldopam, which are used to treat hypertensive emergencies the calcium channel blockers, which are used in both circumstances and the nitrates, which are used mainly in angina (Table 11-3). 

Minoxidil is a very efficacious orally active vasodilator. The effect results from the opening of potassium channels in smooth muscle membranes by minoxidil sulfate, the active metabolite. Increased potassium permeability stabilizes the membrane at its resting potential and makes contraction less likely. Like hydralazine, minoxidil dilates arterioles but not veins. Because of its greater potential antihypertensive effect, minoxidil should replace hydralazine when maximal doses of the latter are not effective or in patients with renal failure and severe hypertension, who do not respond well to hydralazine. 

Hydralazine Causes nitric oxide release Vasodilation reduce vascular resistance arterioles more sensitive than veins reflex tachycardia Hypertension minoxidil also used to treat hair loss Oral Toxicity Angina, tachycardia Hydralazine Lupus-like syndrome... 

Although diuretics are often successful as monotherapy, they also play an important role in patients who require multiple drugs to control blood pressure. Diuretics enhance the efficacy of many agents, particularly ACE inhibitors. Patients being treated with powerful vasodilators such as hydralazine or minoxidil usually require simultaneous diuretics because the vasodilators cause significant salt and water retention. 

The release of renin is altered by a wide variety of pharmacologic agents. Renin release is stimulated by vasodilators (hydralazine, minoxidil, nitroprusside), 13-adrenoceptor agonists, cx-adrenoceptor antagonists, phosphodiesterase inhibitors (eg, theophylline, milrinone, rolipram), and most diuretics and anesthetics. This stimulation can be accounted for by the control mechanisms just described. Drugs that inhibit renin release are discussed below. 

The peripheral receptors activated by noradrenaline fall into at least two classes, a-receptors and /3-receptors, which differ in their function and in their response to drugs. The a-receptors cause constriction of blood vessels and compounds used to block them include indoramin (216), prazosin (217) and phentolamine (218). Another imidazoline, tolazoline (2-benzyl-2-imidazoline), is a useful vasodilator but is unsuitable for the treatment of hypertension since it stimulates the heart. Other drugs described as peripheral vasodilators are diazoxide (219), which is related to the thiazide diuretics, hydralazine (220) which also depresses the CNS, hydracarbazine (221) and minoxidil (222). The /3-receptors control the action of adrenaline on the heart (among other effects) and the agents that block them are mostly nonheterocyclic aromatic compounds with aminoethanol or 3-amino-2-hydroxypropoxy side-chains. They have proved effective in the treatment of hypertension. One heterocyclic compound of this class, timolol (223), is in use. 

The primary vasodilators used in hypertension are hydralazine (Apresoline) and minoxidil (Loniten) (Table 21-5). These drugs are not usually the first medications used in patients with hypertension, but tend to be added to the drug regimen if other agents (diuretics, beta blockers) fail.89 Hydralazine is likewise used to lower blood pressure in emergency situations... 

Although vasodilators are effective in lowering blood pressure, these drugs are associated with a number of adverse effects. Reflex tachycardia often occurs because baroreflex responses attempt to compensate for the fall in vascular resistance that these drugs produce. This side effect is analogous to the increased heart rate occurring when alpha blockers are used to decrease peripheral vascular resistance. Other common reactions include dizziness, postural hypotension, weakness, nausea, fluid retention, and headache. Minoxidil also increases hair growth on the face, ears, forehead,... 

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