Hydralazine

Last updated

Hydralazine
Hydralazine.svg
Hydralazine-based-on-xtals-3D-bs-17.png
Clinical data
Trade names Apresoline, BiDil, others
AHFS/Drugs.com Monograph
MedlinePlus a682246
License data
Pregnancy
category
  • AU:C
Routes of
administration
By mouth, intravenous
ATC code
Legal status
Legal status
Pharmacokinetic data
Bioavailability 26–50%
Protein binding 85–90%
Metabolism Liver
Onset of action 5 to 30 min [2]
Elimination half-life 2–8 hours, 7–16 hours (renal impairment)
Duration of action 2 to 6 hrs [2]
Excretion Urine
Identifiers
  • 1-hydrazinylphthalazine
CAS Number
PubChem CID
IUPHAR/BPS
DrugBank
ChemSpider
UNII
KEGG
ChEBI
ChEMBL
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)
ECHA InfoCard 100.001.528 OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Chemical and physical data
Formula C8H8N4
Molar mass 160.180 g·mol−1
3D model (JSmol)
  • NNc1c2ccccc2cnn1
  • InChI=1S/C8H8N4/c9-11-8-7-4-2-1-3-6(7)5-10-12-8/h1-5H,9H2,(H,11,12) Yes check.svgY
  • Key:RPTUSVTUFVMDQK-UHFFFAOYSA-N Yes check.svgY
   (verify)

Hydralazine, sold under the brand name Apresoline among others, is a medication used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure. [2] This includes high blood pressure in pregnancy and very high blood pressure resulting in symptoms. [3] It has been found to be particularly useful in heart failure, together with isosorbide dinitrate, for treatment of people of African descent. [2] It is given by mouth or by injection into a vein. [3] Effects usually begin around 15 minutes and last up to six hours. [2]

Contents

Common side effects include headache and fast heart rate. [2] It is not recommended in people with coronary artery disease or in those with rheumatic heart disease that affects the mitral valve. [2] In those with kidney disease a low dose is recommended. [3] Hydralazine is in the vasodilator family of medications, so it is believed to work by causing the dilation of blood vessels. [2]

Hydralazine was discovered while scientists at Ciba were looking for a treatment for malaria. [4] It was patented in 1949. [5] It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. [6] In 2021, it was the 106th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 6 million prescriptions. [7] [8]

Medical use

Hydralazine is not used as a primary drug for treating hypertension because it elicits a reflex sympathetic stimulation of the heart (the baroreceptor reflex). [9] The sympathetic stimulation may increase heart rate and cardiac output, and in people with coronary artery disease may cause angina pectoris or myocardial infarction. [10] Hydralazine may also increase plasma renin concentration, resulting in fluid retention. To prevent these undesirable side effects, hydralazine is usually prescribed in combination with a beta blocker (e.g., propranolol) and a diuretic. [10] Beta-blockers licensed to treat heart failure in the UK include bisoprolol, carvedilol, and nebivolol. [11] [12] [13]

Hydralazine is used to treat severe hypertension, but is not a first-line therapy for essential hypertension. Hydralazine is often used to treat hypertension in pregnancy, though, with either labetalol and/or methyldopa. [14]

Hydralazine is commonly used in combination with isosorbide dinitrate for the treatment of congestive heart failure in black populations. This preparation, isosorbide dinitrate/hydralazine, was the first race-based prescription drug. [15]

It should not be used in people who have tachycardia, heart failure, constrictive pericarditis, lupus, a dissecting aortic aneurysm, or porphyria. [16]

Adverse effects

Prolonged treatment may cause a syndrome similar to lupus, which can become fatal if the symptoms are not noticed and drug treatment stopped. [16] Hydralazine is within the top three drugs that is known to induce systemic lupus and this adverse drug event is dose dependent yet significant.

Very common (>10% frequency) side effects include headache, tachycardia, and palpitations. [16]

Common (1–10% frequency) side effects include flushing, hypotension, anginal symptoms, aching or swelling joints, muscle aches, positive tests for atrial natriuretic peptide, stomach upset, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, and swelling (sodium and water retention). [16]

Interactions

It may potentiate the antihypertensive effects of: [16]

Drugs subject to a strong first-pass effect such as beta blockers may increase the bioavailability of hydralazine. [16] The heart rate-accelerating effects of epinephrine (adrenaline) are increased by hydralazine, and coadministration may lead to toxicity. [16]

Mechanism of action

Hydralazine is a direct-acting smooth muscle relaxant and acts as a vasodilator primarily in resistance arterioles, also known as the smooth muscle of the arterial bed. The molecular mechanism involves inhibition of inositol trisphosphate-induced Ca2+ release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum in arterial smooth muscle cells. [17] [18] By relaxing vascular smooth muscle, vasodilators act to decrease peripheral resistance, thereby lowering blood pressure and decreasing afterload. [10]

Metabolic products include the N-acetyl derivative, pyruvic acid hydrazone, and acetone hydrazone, each of which may also contribute to reducing blood pressure. [19]

Chemistry

Hydralazine belongs to the hydrazinophthalazine class of drugs. [20]

History

The antihypertensive activity of hydralazine was discovered by scientists at Ciba, who were trying to discover drugs to treat malaria; it was initially called C-5968 and 1-hydrazinophthalazine; Ciba's patent application was filed in 1945 and issued in 1949, [21] [22] [23] and the first scientific publications of its blood pressure-lowering activities appeared in 1950. [4] [20] [24] It was approved by the FDA in 1953. [25]

It was one of the first antihypertensive medications that could be taken by mouth. [9]

Research

Hydralazine has also been studied as a treatment for myelodysplastic syndrome in its capacity as a DNA methyltransferase inhibitor. [26]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beta blocker</span> Class of medications used to manage abnormal heart rhythms

Beta blockers, also spelled β-blockers, are a class of medications that are predominantly used to manage abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmia), and to protect the heart from a second heart attack after a first heart attack. They are also widely used to treat high blood pressure, although they are no longer the first choice for initial treatment of most patients.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vasodilation</span> Widening of blood vessels

Vasodilation, also known as vasorelaxation, is the widening of blood vessels. It results from relaxation of smooth muscle cells within the vessel walls, in particular in the large veins, large arteries, and smaller arterioles. The process is the opposite of vasoconstriction, which is the narrowing of blood vessels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hydrochlorothiazide</span> Diuretic medication

Hydrochlorothiazide, sold under the brand name Hydrodiuril among others, is a diuretic medication used to treat hypertension and swelling due to fluid build-up. Other uses include treating diabetes insipidus and renal tubular acidosis and to decrease the risk of kidney stones in those with a high calcium level in the urine. Hydrochlorothiazide is taken by mouth and may be combined with other blood pressure medications as a single pill to increase effectiveness. Hydrochlorothiazide is a thiazide medication which inhibits reabsorption of sodium and chloride ions from the distal convoluted tubules of the kidneys, causing a natriuresis. This initially increases urine volume and lowers blood volume. It is believed to reduce peripheral vascular resistance.

Antihypertensives are a class of drugs that are used to treat hypertension. Antihypertensive therapy seeks to prevent the complications of high blood pressure, such as stroke, heart failure, kidney failure and myocardial infarction. Evidence suggests that reduction of the blood pressure by 5 mmHg can decrease the risk of stroke by 34% and of ischaemic heart disease by 21%, and can reduce the likelihood of dementia, heart failure, and mortality from cardiovascular disease. There are many classes of antihypertensives, which lower blood pressure by different means. Among the most important and most widely used medications are thiazide diuretics, calcium channel blockers, ACE inhibitors, angiotensin II receptor antagonists (ARBs), and beta blockers.

Atenolol is a beta blocker medication primarily used to treat high blood pressure and heart-associated chest pain. Atenolol, however, does not seem to improve mortality in those with high blood pressure. Other uses include the prevention of migraines and treatment of certain irregular heart beats. It is taken orally or by intravenous injection. It can also be used with other blood pressure medications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diltiazem</span> Calcium channel blocker medication

Diltiazem, sold under the brand name Cardizem among others, is a nondihydropyridine calcium channel blocker medication used to treat high blood pressure, angina, and certain heart arrhythmias. It may also be used in hyperthyroidism if beta blockers cannot be used. It is taken by mouth or injection into a vein. When given by injection, effects typically begin within a few minutes and last a few hours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indapamide</span> Thiazide-like diuretic drug

Indapamide is a thiazide-like diuretic drug used in the treatment of hypertension, as well as decompensated heart failure. Combination preparations with perindopril are available. The thiazide-like diuretics reduce risk of major cardiovascular events and heart failure in hypertensive patients compared with hydrochlorothiazide with a comparable incidence of adverse events. Both thiazide diuretics and thiazide-like diuretics are effective in reducing risk of stroke. Both drug classes appear to have comparable rates of adverse effects as other antihypertensives such as angiotensin II receptor blockers and dihydropyridine calcium channel blockers and lesser prevalence of side-effects when compared to ACE-inhibitors and non-dihydropyridine calcium channel blockers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Irbesartan</span> Chemical compound

Irbesartan, sold under the brand name Avapro among others, is a medication used to treat high blood pressure, heart failure, and diabetic kidney disease. It is a reasonable initial treatment for high blood pressure. It is taken by mouth. Versions are available as the combination irbesartan/hydrochlorothiazide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isosorbide dinitrate</span> Chemical compound

Isosorbide dinitrate is a medication used for heart failure, esophageal spasms, and to treat and prevent chest pain from not enough blood flow to the heart. It has been found to be particularly useful in heart failure due to systolic dysfunction together with hydralazine. It is taken by mouth or under the tongue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Methyldopa</span> Medication used to treat high blood pressure

Methyldopa, sold under the brand name Aldomet among others, is a medication used for high blood pressure. It is one of the preferred treatments for high blood pressure in pregnancy. For other types of high blood pressure including very high blood pressure resulting in symptoms other medications are typically preferred. It can be given by mouth or injection into a vein. Onset of effects is around 5 hours and they last about a day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isosorbide mononitrate</span> Chemical compound

Isosorbide mononitrate, sold under many brand names, is a medication used for heart-related chest pain (angina), heart failure and esophageal spasms. It can be used both to treat and to prevent heart-related chest pain; however, it is generally less preferred than beta blockers or calcium channel blockers. It is taken by mouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ramipril</span> ACE inhibitor medication

Ramipril, sold under the brand name Altace among others, is an ACE inhibitor type medication used to treat high blood pressure, heart failure, and diabetic kidney disease. It can also be used as a preventative medication in patients over 55 years old to reduce the risk of having a heart attack, stroke or cardiovascular death in patients shown to be at high risk, such as some diabetics and patients with vascular disease. It is a reasonable initial treatment for high blood pressure. It is taken by mouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">PDE5 inhibitor</span> Vasodilating drug

A phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitor is a vasodilating drug that works by blocking the degradative action of cGMP-specific phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE5) on cyclic GMP in the smooth muscle cells lining the blood vessels supplying various tissues. These drugs dilate the corpora cavernosa of the penis, facilitating erection with sexual stimulation, and are used in the treatment of erectile dysfunction (ED). Sildenafil was the first effective oral treatment available for ED. Because PDE5 is also present in the smooth muscle of the walls of the arterioles within the lungs, two PDE5 inhibitors, sildenafil and tadalafil, are FDA-approved for the treatment of pulmonary hypertension. As of 2019, the wider cardiovascular benefits of PDE5 inhibitors are being appreciated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diazoxide</span> Medication used to treat low blood sugar and high blood pressure

Diazoxide, sold under the brand name Proglycem and 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 generally taken by mouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doxazosin</span> Group of stereoisomers

Doxazosin, sold under the brand names Cardura among others, is a medication used to treat symptoms of benign prostatic hyperplasia and hypertension. For high blood pressure, it is a less preferred option. It is taken by mouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bisoprolol</span> Beta-1 selective adrenenergic blocker medication used to treat cardiovascular diseases

Bisoprolol, sold under the brand name Zebeta among others, is a beta blocker medication used for heart diseases. This includes tachyarrhythmias, high blood pressure, chest pain from not enough blood flow to the heart, and heart failure. It is taken by mouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carvedilol</span> Blood pressure medication

Carvedilol, sold under the brand name Coreg among others, is a medication used to treat high blood pressure, congestive heart failure (CHF), and left ventricular dysfunction in people who are otherwise stable. For high blood pressure, it is generally a second-line treatment. It is taken by mouth.

Hydralazine/isosorbide dinitrate, sold under the brand name Bidil, is a fixed-dose combination medication used to treat self-identified Black people with congestive heart failure. It is a combination of hydralazine hydrochloride and isosorbide dinitrate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nebivolol</span> Chemical compound

Nebivolol is a beta blocker used to treat high blood pressure and heart failure. As with other β-blockers, it is generally a less preferred treatment for high blood pressure. It may be used by itself or with other blood pressure medication. It is taken by mouth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Drug-induced lupus erythematosus</span> Medical condition

Drug-induced lupus erythematosus is an autoimmune disorder caused by chronic use of certain drugs. These drugs cause an autoimmune response producing symptoms similar to those of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). There are 38 known medications to cause DIL but there are three that report the highest number of cases: hydralazine, procainamide, and quinidine. While the criteria for diagnosing DIL has not been thoroughly established, symptoms of DIL typically present as muscle pain and joint pain. Generally, the symptoms recede after discontinuing use of the drugs.

References

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  23. US2484029; see Example 1
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