Generic Medication guide:
What is the medical product named Tofranil? When can it be used?
The trademark Tofranil is owned by Novartis, a transnational pharmaceutical corporation with the headquarters in Switzerland. The active agent used in the medication was developed back in 1950 by the company named Ciba-Geigy that is for many years owned by Novartis. To date, it one of the main representatives of tricyclic antidepressants that is even being one of the first ones is still quite popular due to its high efficiency and clinical value. The formulation’s antidepressive effect is accompanied by the stimulating action which is why it is quite effective in depression with low productivity, apathy, and other symptoms typical for severe depression.
Since the creation of the formulation is dated back more than 60 years ago, it’s only natural that the exclusive patent had already expired and now the same medicinal product can be made and sold by other companies.
You can buy Tofranil for the therapy of:
- Depressive states of different cause and nature, for instance, endogenous, climacteric, reactive, alcoholic, somatic, neurotic, psychotic and other types of depression.
- Panic disorders;
- Bipolar disorder’s depressive phase.
- Night enuresis (bedwetting) in children as a temporary supportive therapy in case no organic causes (diseases) are diagnosed.
The formulation is very effective for the therapy of even severe and resistant to another therapy conditions but it the other side of the coin is that is so efficient that it can reverse a depressive disorder into mania or hypomania manifested in increased excitability, emotional lability, mood swings, laughing and crying without any reason, and so on. This is especially probable in case of the therapy of bipolar disorder. The chance of the depressive phase reversion into the manic phase is around 25%. If this is the case, it is reasonable to replace the medication with the antidepressants from the class of selective serotonin inhibitors.
Clinical data
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Trade names
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Tofranil, Tofranil-PM, others |
Pregnancy category
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AU: C
US: N (Not classified yet) |
Routes of administration
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By mouth, intramuscular injection |
Legal status
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AU: S4 (Prescription only)
CA: RX-only
UK: POM (Prescription only)
US: RX-only |
Bioavailability
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94-96% |
Protein binding
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86% |
Metabolism
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Hepatic |
Metabolites
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Desipramine |
Elimination half-life
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20 hours |
Excretion
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Renal (80%), fecal (20%) |
When should not you buy Tofranil?
The use of this antidepressant can do you more harm than good if you have the below-listed conditions:
- Allergy to the medication’s components and/or other antidepressants from the benzodiazepine group.
- Use of MAO inhibitors.
- Recent myocardial infarction;
- Heart conductivity disorders;
- Heart arrhythmia;
- Manic disorder;
- Severe liver or kidney dysfunction;
- Urinary retention;
- Narrow-angle glaucoma;
- Schizophrenia;
- Ischemic heart disease;
- Congestive heart failure;
- Seizures and any disorders or diseases that make you prone to seizures;
- Benign prostatic hyperplasia;
- Atony of the bladder (weakening of its muscles, urinary incontinence);
- Pregnancy;
- Age under six years.
If you know that you have any chronic conditions, for instance, heart disorder, but are not sure whether they can be considered contraindications for the medication use, talk to your doctor before you buy generic Tofranil.
Adverse effects that can be expected from the use of Tofranil
Adverse reactions to the medication use listed below do not necessarily occur in every patient. Some of the adverse reactions have a dosage-dependent character and fade away with the dosage reduction or disappear without any dosage change once the patient’s body gets used to the formulation. Besides, certain adverse effects such as fatigue, sleep violation, agitation, anxiety, dry mouth, and others can be attributed not to the pills use but to the depressive disorder itself. However, in case of any serious neurologic or mental symptoms or disorders occur, the use of Tofranil must be immediately terminated.
Senior patients are usually more susceptible to the occurrence of anticholinergic, neurological, psychiatric or cardiovascular effects as the excretion rate and efficiency in this group of patients can be impaired that is dangerous with the increase of the medication level in the blood.
- Nervous system and sensory organs: headache, dizziness, excessive sedation, paresthesia, tremor, convulsions, dysarthria, impaired coordination of movements, sleep disturbance, agitation, hallucinations, disruption of accommodation.
- Cardiovascular system and blood (hematopoiesis, hemostasis): tachycardia, arrhythmia, orthostatic hypotension, leukocytosis or leukopenia, agranulocytosis.
- Digestive tract: dry mouth, constipation, hepatitis.
- Genital and urinary system: delayed urination, gynecomastia, galactorrhea, decreased libido, impotence.
- Other adverse effects include weight gain, light sensitivity, hair loss, fever, excessive sweating of the whole body or some.
Age Range
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Drug-Placebo Difference in Number of Cases of Suicidality per 1000 Patients Treated
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Increases Compared to Placebo
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<18
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14 additional cases
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18 - 24
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5 additional cases
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Decreases Compared to Placebo
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25 - 64
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1 fewer case
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≥65
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6 fewer cases
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Dosages of Tofranil
When you buy Imipramine, you should know that this medicine is a potent antidepressant which if used improperly can significantly damage your health so it is preferable to strictly follow your therapist’s prescription and view the below-presented information as introductory material. The recommendations you can see in this article are taken from the official drug label.
As in case with other antidepressants, to assess the real effective action of Imipramine from two to eight weeks of uninterrupted use can be required. The use of the formulation must be started from low dosages with the following g phasing up if the effect is insufficient until the minimum dosage that effectively eliminates the treated disorder symptoms.
- Ambulatory (at home) depression treatment of patients aged 18-60 is made with 25 mg taken once to thrice a day with the phasing up to 150-200 mg daily dosage achieved till the end of the first week of the therapy. The usual maintenance dosage is 50-100 mg a day.
- Hospital treatment of depression of aged 18-60 with severe depression is started with 75 mg a day with daily dosage increase by 25 mg till 200 or even 300 (rarely) mg a day. These dosages and dosage increases are suitable only if a patient is under the around the clock medical supervision.
- Patients aged 60 and more years should be treated with the lowest possible dosages with the increase of the dosage (if required) till 50-75 mg a day maximally. It is desirable to reach the optimal dosage in 10 days of the therapy and maintain it throughout the entire course.
- Panic disorder therapy is started with the minimum dosages and if a temporary aggravation of anxiety at the beginning of the therapy occurs, it should be eliminated or treated with benzodiazepines the dosages of which should be gradually lowered in accordance to the lowering of anxiety symptoms. The regular daily dosage of Tofranil is between 75-100 mg a day with the increase to 200 mg in the most severe cases. The minimum treatment course duration is a half of year.
For the therapy discontinuation, the dosage of the medication should be lowered gradually till the complete withdrawal.
Use of Tofranil in children
You should buy generic Imipramine only for children older than six years and only if the diagnosis confirms that there are no physical diseases that cause bedwetting. Besides, the medication is used only as a temporary measure.
The regular dosages are:
- 6-8 years with the body mass between 20-25 kg – 25 mg a day;
- 9-12 years with the body mass between 25-35 kg – 25-50 mg a day;
- Aged over 12 years with the body mass over 35 kg – 50-75 mg a day.
In case of therapy of children, the daily dosage must not exceed 2.5 mg per kg of the body weight.
It is advised to use the minimum regular dosage and the daily dose should be taken once a day after a meal before bedtime. If the bedwetting occurs in the first half of the night, it is recommended to split the dosage and give the child a half of it after midday and the second one before bedtime.
The therapy of kids must not be longer than three months.
Tofranil interactions
When you order Tofranil, you should know that it is incompatible with MAO inhibitors and alcohol. Besides, it also:
- Lowers the efficiency of Phenytoin.
- Renders a more pronounced sedative effect when combined with cholinolytics, phenothiazines, and benzodiazepines.
If you take any medications – talk to your doctor before you buy and start using any tricyclic antidepressant as your doctor knows your disease history better than anyone and can give you the best advice.
Overdose of Tofranil
The symptoms that indicate that you have taken the dosage that is inappropriately high for you are dizziness, excitability, seizures, stupor, tachycardia (rapid heartbeat), low arterial pressure, depressed breathing, AV block, nausea, and others.
The treatment implies gastric lavage, activated charcoal intake, slow infusion of physostigmine salicylate, and symptomatic treatment (anticonvulsants).
Where can you buy Tofranil?
The best way to get this and other medications that you need is to order generic Tofranil pills or other pills that you need from our pharmacy that sells high-quality generic medications at the most affordable prices and offers attractive discounts to its loyal customers.
Tofranil shipping
We ship worldwide including the U.S., UK, Australia, Canada, and other countries.
Free prescription
Our doctor prescribes online for free, and there is no doctor’s consultation fee.
Discrete packaging
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