Drug Name

Trandate (Labetalol)

Drug Uses

This medication is used to treat severe high blood pressure (hypertension). Lowering high blood pressure helps prevent strokes, heart attacks and kidney problems.

How Taken

Follow the directions for using this medicine provided by your doctor. Take this medicine with food or milk.

Drug Class and Mechanism

Trandate is a drug that is used for treating high blood pressure. It is related to carvedilol (Coreg). Nerves that are part of the adrenergic nervous system travel to most arteries where they release an adrenergic chemical norepinephrine. The norepinephrine attaches to receptors on the muscles of the arteries and causes the muscles to contract, narrowing the arteries, and increasing the blood pressure. Trandate blocks receptors of the adrenergic nervous system. When trandate attaches to and blocks the receptors, the arterial muscles relax, and the arteries expand, resulting in a fall in blood pressure. The FDA first approved Trandate in 1997.

Missed Dose

If the dose is interrupted, contact the doctor immediately to re-establish dosing.

Storage

Store the vials at room temperature between 36 and 86 degrees F (2 to 30 degrees C) and away from light. Do not freeze. After dilution in the correct IV fluids, this product is stable for 24 hours refrigerated or at room temperature. Discard any unused liquid.

Warnings/Precautions

Tell your doctor your medical history, especially of: liver problems, heart problems (e.g., mild/moderate congestive heart failure), pheochromocytoma, diabetes, any allergies. This medication is not recommended for use if you have the following medical conditions: lung disease (asthma, COPD), certain heart problems (e.g. advanced heart block, severe bradycardia, severe heart failure, post-CABG surgery).

This drug may make you dizzy for up to 3 hours after it is given. You should remain lying down during this time period in order to prevent falls. You should get up slowly when rising from a seated or lying position; another person should assist you. Use caution when performing activities that require alertness such as driving or using machinery.

Limit alcoholic beverages. If you have a history of severe allergic reactions, consult your doctor or pharmacist. Normal doses of epinephrine may not be as effective while you are using this medication. If you are diabetic, this drug may block certain symptoms of low blood sugar. Increased sweating is a symptom that is not affected.

Consult your doctor or pharmacist for more details. Caution is advised when using this drug in the elderly because they may be more sensitive to the effects of the drug. Trandate should be used only when clearly needed during pregnancy. Discuss the risks and benefits with your doctor. This medication passes into breast milk. Consult your doctor before breast-feeding.

Possible Side Effects

Fatigue, nausea, or tingling of the scalp/skin may occur. If any of these effects persist or worsen, notify your doctor promptly. Tell your doctor immediately if this potentially serious side effect occurs: dizziness. Tell your doctor immediately if these unlikely but serious side effects occur: fainting, leg pain, increased sweating, increased urination, unusual thirst. Tell your doctor immediately if any of these highly unlikely but very serious side effects occur: unusually slow or irregular heartbeat, persistent loss of appetite, stomach pain, persistent sore throat or fever, easy bleeding or bruising, vision changes, difficulty urinating, mental/mood changes.

Rare, but possibly fatal, liver problems have occurred during labetalol use. Seek immediate medical attention if you develop: dark urine, yellowing eyes or skin. An allergic reaction to this drug is unlikely, but seek immediate medical attention if it occurs.

Symptoms of an allergic reaction include: rash, itching, swelling, severe dizziness, trouble breathing.

If you notice other effects not listed above, call your doctor or pharmacist.

More Information

Laboratory and/or medical tests (e.g., liver function) may be performed to monitor your progress.

What is the shelf life of the pills?

• The expiry date is mentioned on each blister. It is different for different batches. The shelf life is 2 years from the date of manufacture and would differ from batch to batch depending on when they were manufactured.

Other Useful Information:

Radiation: 1. Rays of energy. Gamma rays and X-rays are two of the types of energy waves often used in medicine. 2. The use of energy waves to diagnose or treat disease.

Replantation: 1. Literally, the act of planting again. 2. In surgery, the restoration of any part of the body to its original site. Also known as reimplantation.

The Chinese surgeon Zhong Wei Chen (1929-2004) was the "father of replantation." Dr. Chen was the first to reattach a severed hand with success which he did in 1963. Dr. Chen also developed many microsurgical procedures including techniques for preserving severed extremities, reattaching amputated fingers and thumbs, reconstructing muscles and repairing nerves and blood vessels.

Rheumatism: Rheumatism is an older term, used to describe any of a number of painful conditions of muscles, tendons, joints, and bones.

Rheumatism conditions have been classified as either localized, regional, or generalized. Localized rheumatism conditions include bursitis and tendinitis. Regional rheumatism conditions include chest wall pain, temporomandibular joint pain, and myofascial pain syndromes. Generalized rheumatism conditions include fibromyalgia.

Another category of rheumatism is psychogenic rheumatism. With this term it is understood that the patient is reporting inconsistent pains of muscles and joints that do not correspond to true anatomy and physiology. The patient is felt to have underlying psychological causes for the symptoms.

Rheumatology: A subspecialty of internal medicine that involves the non-surgical evaluation and treatment of the rheumatic diseases and conditions. Rheumatic diseases and conditions are characterized by symptoms involving the musculoskeletal system. Many of the rheumatic diseases and conditions feature immune system abnormalities. Therefore, rheumatology also involves the study of the immune system. Classical rheumatology training includes 4 years of medical school, 1 year of internship in internal medicine, 2 years of internal medicine residency, and 2 years of rheumatology fellowship. There is a subspecialty board for rheumatology certification. The American College of Rheumatology is the official organization acting on behalf of the field of rheumatology in the United States.

T cell: A type of white blood cell that is of key importance to the immune system and is at the core of adaptive immunity, the system that tailors the body's immune response to specific pathogens. The T cells are like soldiers who search out and destroy the targeted invaders.

Immature T cells (termed T-stem cells) migrate to the thymus gland in the neck, where they mature and differentiate into various types of mature T cells and become active in the immune system in response to a hormone called thymosin and other factors. T-cells that are potentially activated against the body's own tissues are normally killed or changed ("down-regulated") during this maturational process.

There are several different types of mature T cells. Not all of their functions are known. T cells can produce substances called cytokines such as the interleukins which further stimulate the immune response. T-cell activation is measured as a way to assess the health of patients with HIV/AIDS and less frequently in other disorders.

T cell are also known as T lymphocytes. The "T" stands for "thymus" -- the organ in which these cells mature. As opposed to B cells which mature in the bone marrow.

Teleology: The study of the ultimate purpose of the design of something in nature.

For example, "what is the true purpose of the nose?" is a teleological question and, to say that all evolutionary changes occur for a definite purpose is a teleological explanation of evolution.

"Teleology" comes from ancient Greek roots but it (and teleological) did not enter English until the 18th century. It is a compound of the Greek "tele-, telos," meaning "end or purpose" + the ending "logos" meaning "the science or study of" = the study of the ends or purposes.

Testosterone: A "male hormone" -- a sex hormone produced by the testes that encourages the development of male sexual characteristics, stimulates the activity of the male secondary sex characteristics, and prevents changes in them following castration. Chemically, testosterone is 17-beta-hydroxy-4-androstene-3-one.

Testosterone is the most potent of the naturally occurring androgens. The androgens cause the development of male sex characteristics, such as a deep voice and a beard; they also strengthen muscle tone and bone mass.

High levels of testosterone appear to promote good health in men, for example, lowering the risks of high blood pressure and heart attack. High testosterone levels also correlate with risky behavior, however, including increased aggressiveness and smoking, which may cancel out these health benefits.

Testosterone may be given to treat medical conditions, including female (but not male) breast cancer, hypogonadism (low gonadal function) in the male, cryptorchism (nondescent of the testis into the scrotum), and menorrhagia (irregular periods).