ALERT
Composition:
Cetirizine HCl 10 mg Tablet
Cetirizine HCl 5mg/5ml syrup
Description:
Cetirizine is a second-generation antihistamine used in the treatment of allergies, hay fever, angioedema, and urticaria. It is a major metabolite of hydroxyzine, and a racemic selective H1 receptor inverse agonist.
Pharmacology
Cetirizine crosses the blood–brain barrier only slightly, reducing the sedative side-effect common with older antihistamines. It has also been shown to inhibit eosinophil chemotaxis and LTB4 release. At a dosage of 20 mg, Boone et al. found that it inhibited the expression of VCAM-1 in patients with atopic dermatitis. Unlike many other antihistamines, Cetirizine does not exhibit anticholinergic properties.
The levorotary enantiomer of cetirizine, known as levocetirizine, is the more active form.
Indications
- Allergies
- Rhino virus infection
- Kimura’s disease
Cetirizine is an effective agent in treating the symptoms of Kimura’s disease, which mostly occurs in young Asian men, affecting the lymph nodes and soft tissue of the head and neck in the form of tumor-like lesions. Cetirizine’s properties of being effective both in the treatment of pruritus (itching) and as an anti-inflammatory agent make it suitable for the treatment of the pruritus associated with these lesions.
