A World of Beta Blockers
Posted 04-02-2008 at 06:18 AM by ladypam
Whenever you stumble into a conversation between two middle aged people or even geriatrics, you notice the word beta blockers being tossed around as a common topic of conversation. It is like “my beta blockers this” and “your beta blockers that.” For those who haven’t the faintest idea on what beta blockers are, then read on.
Beta Blockers belong to a classification of drugs that are primarily involved in the management of faulty cardiac rhythms as well as a preventive measure for those who have a history of heart attacks. It was first prescribed as a hypertension drug but was re classified as other drugs were discovered to do the job better. Also, beta blockers were seen to react with several drugs and substances making it quite difficult to take especially if you are taking any other medication.
Beta blockers are also known as beta agonists, beta adrenergic agonists and beta adrenergic blocking agents. Most beta blockers have names ending in a –nolol or something as tongue twisting as that. A good example is Propanolol which was invented by Sir James Black for the treatment of angina pectoris, more commonly known as chest pain.
The action of beta blockers is basically to block or halt the action of adrenaline and noradrenaline on its specific receptors, the Beta adrenergic receptors, therefore, blocking also the “fight or flight” response initiated by the sympathetic nervous system. These receptors are chiefly found in the cardiac muscle, kidneys, lungs, GI Tract, liver, smooth and skeletal muscle, and the uterus. Some receptors are also found on fat cells.
When these receptors are stimulated by an external force, it increases the action of the affected organs such as an increase in the conduction in the heart, relaxation of smooth muscles, skeletal muscle tremors, glycogenolysis or the breakdown of glycogen in the liver, and lipolysis or the breakdown of fat. Beta blockers stop these actions from happening by blocking the stimulation to those receptors responsible for this, brought about by stimulation on the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system is usually activated when faced with a stressful situation or a suspenseful one. So using beta blockers will prevent these actions from occurring which led people to believe that it stopped hypertension from occurring through the prevention of the actions that lead to hypertension.
Beta blockers such as pindolol and oxprenolol have an intrinsic sympathomimetic activity. This means that it can both exert activity on the receptor and block its activity. It can select which receptors to affect. This is best for those who are experiencing bradycardia and is under therapy using beta blockers. Other examples of beta blockers such as carvedilol and labetalol have been seen to exert activity on both beta and alpha adrenergic receptors, which affects the vasodilation of the arterioles in the lungs.
Beta blockers have been used for the treatment of several illnesses such as mitral valve prolapse, congestive heart failure, hypertension, cardiac arrhythmia, glaucoma, myocardial infarction, migraine, tremors, and even some problems with the cardiac muscle and aneurysms in the aorta.
There are several kinds of beta blockers in the market today. It is best to consult with a health care provider on what is best for you to use since these beta blockers have their own specific actions.
Beta Blockers belong to a classification of drugs that are primarily involved in the management of faulty cardiac rhythms as well as a preventive measure for those who have a history of heart attacks. It was first prescribed as a hypertension drug but was re classified as other drugs were discovered to do the job better. Also, beta blockers were seen to react with several drugs and substances making it quite difficult to take especially if you are taking any other medication.
Beta blockers are also known as beta agonists, beta adrenergic agonists and beta adrenergic blocking agents. Most beta blockers have names ending in a –nolol or something as tongue twisting as that. A good example is Propanolol which was invented by Sir James Black for the treatment of angina pectoris, more commonly known as chest pain.
The action of beta blockers is basically to block or halt the action of adrenaline and noradrenaline on its specific receptors, the Beta adrenergic receptors, therefore, blocking also the “fight or flight” response initiated by the sympathetic nervous system. These receptors are chiefly found in the cardiac muscle, kidneys, lungs, GI Tract, liver, smooth and skeletal muscle, and the uterus. Some receptors are also found on fat cells.
When these receptors are stimulated by an external force, it increases the action of the affected organs such as an increase in the conduction in the heart, relaxation of smooth muscles, skeletal muscle tremors, glycogenolysis or the breakdown of glycogen in the liver, and lipolysis or the breakdown of fat. Beta blockers stop these actions from happening by blocking the stimulation to those receptors responsible for this, brought about by stimulation on the sympathetic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system is usually activated when faced with a stressful situation or a suspenseful one. So using beta blockers will prevent these actions from occurring which led people to believe that it stopped hypertension from occurring through the prevention of the actions that lead to hypertension.
Beta blockers such as pindolol and oxprenolol have an intrinsic sympathomimetic activity. This means that it can both exert activity on the receptor and block its activity. It can select which receptors to affect. This is best for those who are experiencing bradycardia and is under therapy using beta blockers. Other examples of beta blockers such as carvedilol and labetalol have been seen to exert activity on both beta and alpha adrenergic receptors, which affects the vasodilation of the arterioles in the lungs.
Beta blockers have been used for the treatment of several illnesses such as mitral valve prolapse, congestive heart failure, hypertension, cardiac arrhythmia, glaucoma, myocardial infarction, migraine, tremors, and even some problems with the cardiac muscle and aneurysms in the aorta.
There are several kinds of beta blockers in the market today. It is best to consult with a health care provider on what is best for you to use since these beta blockers have their own specific actions.
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