Review of 13 popular drugs for the heart: their pros and cons

From this article you will learn: what kind of heart drugs list is often used for the treatment of cardiac diseases, what indications they should be used for, what side effects can their administration lead to.

content articles( the list of drugs):

Doctors have a fairly large arsenal of medicines that they prescribe for the treatedI have heart disease. Unfortunately, many cardiac patients, giving in to advertising in the media and on the Internet, independently start taking medications that do not have any proven effective properties. Sometimes these funds are prescribed by doctors.

The most popular and often prescribed cardiac drugs in the people include in their list and funds listed in the content of the article. We will talk about them further.

Cardiovascular preparations have different release forms:

• Tablets or capsules that need to be swallowed, kept under the tongue or dissolved in water.
• Aerosols that need to be sprayed into the mouth.
• Solutions for intravenous or intramuscular injection.
• Healing plasters, which need to be glued to the skin.

Heart diseases are treated by cardiologists, general practitioners and general practitioners.

1. Antiaggregants

Antiaggregants are drugs that prevent platelet aggregation among themselves( aggregation), preventing the formation of thrombi.

Aspirin

The most popular and known antiplatelet is acetylsalicylic acid( aspirin).In large doses, this drug is used with antipyretic, anti-inflammatory and analgesic. In a dose of 75-100 mg, aspirin inhibits platelet aggregation( adhesion), which leads to the prevention of stroke and myocardial infarction. It is for this purpose that doctors prescribe it in patients with cardiovascular diseases and an increased risk of their development. Aspirin is not recommended for patients who have:

These contraindications are due to the fact that aspirin adversely affects the gastric mucosa and increases the risk of bleeding.

The most famous trade medications containing aspirin are Cardiomagnesium, Aspirin Cardio, Magnikor.

Clopidogrel

Another frequently prescribed drug from the group of antiplatelet agents is clopidogrel. It, like aspirin, interferes with the aggregation of platelets, preventing the formation of thrombi. Its effect is more pronounced than that of aspirin. Assign clopidogrel to patients with aspirin intolerance. The combined use of these two agents is prescribed to patients after stenting or bypassing the coronary arteries. The use of clopidogrel can reduce the risk of stroke and myocardial infarction.

The main danger of clopidogrel, as well as aspirin, is the increased risk of bleeding. It is because of this that doctors try to avoid a dual antiplatelet therapy with a combination of these drugs.

The most popular drug containing clopidogrel is Plavix.

2. Statins

Statins are drugs that reduce the level of harmful blood cholesterol, which can lead to atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, statins are prescribed for:

Statins can not cure these diseases, but they help prevent their development and progression.

The main danger in the use of these drugs is muscle and liver damage.

The most popular statins are atorvastatin, rosuvastatin and simvastatin.

3. Angiotensin converting enzyme( ACE inhibitors)

These drugs interfere with the production of angiotensin - a hormone, which contributes to the narrowing of the arteries. Due to the expansion of the vessels, the pressure decreases and the load on the heart decreases. ACE inhibitors reduce the risk of stroke and myocardial infarction.

Doctors prescribe these drugs for the heart to patients with:

These drugs have few side effects, the main one of which is a dry cough.

The most popular of ACE inhibitors are captopril, enalapril, ramipril and perindopril.

4. Beta-blockers

Beta-blockers reduce blood pressure, strength and heart rate, thereby reducing the need for cardiac muscle in oxygen.

The main indications for the prescription of these drugs include:

• arterial hypertension;
• angina;
• myocardial infarction;
• cardiac rhythm disturbances with high pulse;
• heart failure.

The use of beta-blockers in cardiac patients helps to reduce morbidity and mortality.

To negative qualities of these drugs belong:

In addition, there is evidence that taking beta-blockers can increase the risk of developing diabetes.

The most popular beta-blockers are bisoprolol( Concor), carvedilol( Coriol), nebivolol( Nebilet).

5. Angiotensin receptor antagonists

These drugs prevent the effects of angiotensin on the cardiovascular system. Doctors prescribe angiotensin receptor antagonists with poor ACE tolerance, as they have fewer side effects.

The most famous antagonists of angiotensin receptors are losartan( Lozap, Lorista) and telmisartan( Mikardis).

6. Calcium channel blockers

These drugs dilate the blood vessels, thereby improving blood flow to the heart and lowering blood pressure. Calcium channel blockers are used to treat arterial hypertension, angina pectoris and certain types of heart rhythm disturbances.

Since these drugs dilate the blood vessels, they can cause headaches, flushes of blood to the skin, swelling on the lower limbs.

Examples of calcium channel blockers are amlodipine, felodipine, and verapamil.

7. Nitrates

Nitrates dilate the blood vessels that are used to treat angina pectoris. Examples of these drugs are nitroglycerin and isosorbide dinitrate( nitrosorbide).Tablets or an aerosol of nitroglycerin quickly remove an attack of angina, so almost every patient with this disease carries it with them.

The main side effects of nitrates are headaches, swelling on the legs and a rush of blood to the face.

8. Diuretics

Diuretics( diuretics) help to remove excess fluid from the body, thereby reducing pressure, reducing swelling and shortness of breath. Therefore, they are used for arterial hypertension and heart failure.

Side effects of diuretics include:

Examples of diuretics, often used in heart diseases, are veroshpiron, indapamide, furosemide, hydrochlorothiazide, torasemide.

9. Cardiac glycosides

Glycosides increase the strength of the heart contractions and slow down their frequency, which can be useful for heart failure and rhythm disturbances.

These drugs have toxic effects, so you should carefully follow the doctor's advice on how to take them. Symptoms of side effects of glycosides include nausea, vomiting, impaired appetite, visual impairment, hallucinations, confusion, unusual thoughts and behavior.

10. Anticoagulants

Anticoagulants are agents that affect blood clotting factors in the plasma, thereby preventing the formation of blood clots. They are used after surgery for the implantation of artificial valves in the heart and atrial fibrillation, this helps to prevent the formation of blood clots in the heart cavity.

The main side effects of anticoagulants are an increased risk of bleeding of different locations, so when using them, you need to monitor the laboratory indicators of blood coagulability.

The main representatives of this group of drugs are warfarin and rivaroxaban( Xarelto).

In urgent situations( myocardial infarction, unstable angina), injectable anticoagulants - heparin, enoxaparin( Clexan), fondaparinux( Arikstra) are used.

11. Antiarrhythmic drugs

Drugs from various groups belong to antiarrhythmic drugs. For example, they can include beta-blockers, calcium channel blockers, digoxin.

Other antiarrhythmic drugs include:

• amiodarone;
• flecainide;
• procainamide;
• propafenone;
• is sotalol.

The purpose of these agents is to restore the normal rhythm of the heart rate or normalize the heart rate.

12. Drugs containing potassium and magnesium

Potassium and magnesium are essential elements for the heart and the whole body. If they are deficient, the risk of developing cardiac arrhythmias and coronary artery atherosclerosis increases. Very often a shortage of potassium and magnesium is observed when using diuretics that stimulate their excretion in the urine.

The preparations containing a combination of potassium and magnesium - panangin, asparkam are very popular.

13. Metabolic agents

These drugs are designed to improve the metabolism in cardiac cells and protect them from the negative effects of oxygen shortage. They are often prescribed for ischemic heart disease, heart failure, cardiomyopathy, angina pectoris, myocardial infarction. However, most of these drugs do not have a scientifically proven positive effect on the functioning of the cardiovascular system, the prognosis and life expectancy of cardiac patients. Most of the clinical recommendations in Europe and the US do not advise their use in heart disease.

The most popular metabolic drugs are trimetazidine( Preductal), meldonium( Mildronate), thiotriazolin and riboxin.

It should be noted that the European Medicines Agency allows the use of trimetazidine for the treatment of angina pectoris if other drugs can not control the symptoms of this disease.