Details

Terazosin is in a group of drugs called alpha-adrenergic blockers. Terazosin relaxes your veins and arteries so that blood can more easily pass through them. It also relaxes the muscles in the prostate and bladder neck, making it easier to urinate. Terazosin is used to treat hypertension (high blood pressure), or to improve urination in men with benign prostatic hyperplasia (enlarged prostate). Terazosin can affect your pupils during cataract surgery. Tell your eye surgeon ahead of time that you are using terazosin. Terazosin may cause dizziness or fainting, especially when you first start taking it or when you start taking it again.

Typical Uses

Terazosin is used alone or with other drugs to treat high blood pressure (hypertension). Lowering high blood pressure helps prevent strokes, heart attacks, and kidney problems. This medication works by relaxing blood vessels so blood can flow more easily. Terazosin is also used in men to treat the symptoms of an enlarged prostate (benign prostatic hyperplasia-BPH). It does not shrink the prostate, but it works by relaxing the muscles in the prostate and part of the bladder. This helps to relieve symptoms of BPH such as difficulty in beginning the flow of urine, weak stream, and the need to urinate frequently or urgently (including during the middle of the night). Terazosin belongs to a class of drugs known as alpha blockers. Terazosin may also be used to help your body "pass," or get rid of, kidney stones through urination. It has also been used to help treat bladder problems in women.

Side Effects

Common terazosin side effects may include fast or pounding heartbeats or fluttering in your chest feeling like you might pass out swelling in your hands, ankles, or feet or penis erection that is painful or lasts 4 hours or longer.

Drug Interactions

• Terazosin+sodium oxybate- Using sodium oxybate together with terazosin may increase side effects such as drowsiness, dizziness, light-headedness, confusion, depression, low blood pressure, slow or shallow breathing, and impairment in thinking, judgment, and motor coordination. Occasionally, severe reactions may result in coma and even death.
• Terazosin+tizanidine- Tizanidine and terazosin may have additive effects in lowering your blood pressure. You may experience headache, dizziness, light-headedness, fainting, and/or changes in pulse or heart rate. These side effects are most likely to be seen at the beginning of treatment, following a dose increase, or when treatment is restarted after an interruption.

Mechanism of action

Terazosin belongs to class of medications called alpha-receptor blockers or alpha-blockers. Terazosin antagonizes the alpha receptors causing relaxation of the smooth muscle tone in the prostate and bladder neck hence the urine is passed easily in patients with enlarged prostrate. Further, terazosin by binding to alpha-1 receptors relaxes the blood vessels thereby lowering the high blood pressure.

Pregnancy Category : C