What is Betapace? How to Treat with Generic Sotalol.

Generic Betapace (Sotalol 20 mg) guide:

Betapace and Generic Betapace (Sotalol) is a medication that has antianginal, antiarrhythmic, and hypotensive action. The drug’s effect is achieved through two mechanisms – its mechanism as a beta-blocker and potassium channel inhibitor.

When should you use Generic Betapace (Sotalol)?

You can buy Generic Betapace (Sotalol) and use it if your doctor prescribes you Solatol-based preparation for the treatment of arterial hypertension (high blood pressure), arrhythmia, especially in chaotic contractions), trembling of the atria, supraventricular tachycardia (cardiac rhythm disturbance), including the one that results from Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, ventricular tachycardia, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, mitral valve prolapse, prevention and treatment of myocardial infarction (in stable patient condition).

How does geneirc Sotalol act?

Through the blocking of adrenergic receptors, the drug reduces the development of cyclic adenosine monophosphate and adenosine triphosphate stimulated by the catecholamines and. As a result, the intracellular current of calcium is reduced. Betapace (Sotalol) also slows down the heart rate and myocardial contractility.

The arterial pressure lowering effect is caused by the decrease of circulated blood volume per minute, sympathetic stimulation of the blood vessels, lowered activity of the renin–angiotensin system (a hormonal body system that plays role in the regulation of the blood pressure), the restoration of aortic arch baroreceptors’ function (prevents their hyperactivity related to the lowering of the blood pressure), and the effect on the central nervous system.
The effect for angina management is explained by the decrease of the demand of oxygen  by myocardium as a result of the slowed down heart rate as well as the reduction of the myocardium sensitivity to the effects of sympathetic innervations.

The positive effect in arrhythmia treatment by the medication happens because of the elimination of factors that contribute to arrhythmia such as tachycardia, excessive activity of the sympathetic nervous system, high concentration of cyclic adenosine monophosphate, and elevated blood pressure, and fast rate of spontaneous excitation of sinus and ectopic pacemakers. The onset of the decreasing heart rate after the drug intake is 1-2 hours, the duration of the effect is 12 hours. In intravenous drug administration, the effect occurs in 5 minutes and lasts for 90-120 minutes. During the treatment of elevated blood pressure, the initial hypotensive effect occurs within 2-5 days after the therapy start. The stable effect is achieved within 1-2 months of daily intake.

How to use Generic Betapace (Sotalol)?

First of all, before you buy Generic Betapace (Sotalol), make sure to clarify with your doctor that she or he recommends you namely this drug as there are other medications used for the same conditions. If you are allergic to one of the components of the medication, you will need to change it after the consultation with your doctor. Below are the common dosages that are recommended to various groups of patients.

The pills should be taken without chewing and washed down with sufficient amount of water.
- For angina, the drug should be taken by 80 mg 2 times a day.
- For hypertension (high blood pressure), the standard daily dosage is 80 mg taken once a day. If the effect is insufficient, the dosage can be increased by 80 mg every week till the minimum effective dosage is found.
- For the treatment of ventricular tachyarrhythmias, the dosage is 80 mg taken 2 times a day (160 mg in total). If the effect is insufficient, the dosage can be increased to 80 mg taken 3 times a day (240 mg a day in total) or 160 mg taken twice a day (320 mg a day divided into two intakes). Usually, the minimum effective dosage is 320 mg a day.

Dosage adjustments for people with impaired kidney function should be made taking into account the creatinine clearance per minute. In the creatinine clearance 10-30 ml per minute, the standard dosage should be cut in two. If the creatinine clearance is less than 10 ml per minute, the standard dosage should be cut in four.

Whom the drug is contraindicated?

You should not buy Generic Betapace (Sotalol) and use it if you are allergic to one or several components of the drug, suffer from acute heart failure or chronic heart failure exacerbation, cardiogenic shock, atrioventricular block of 2 or 3 stage, sinoatrial node disease, Prinzmetal angina, cardiomegaly, arterial hypotension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bronchial asthma (severe course); occlusal diseases of peripheral vessels, diabetes mellitus with ketoacidosis, metabolic acidosis, and during lactation.

The drug should be also used with caution in people prone to allergic reactions, in chronic heart failure, pheochromocytoma, during pregnancy, hepatic insufficiency, chronic renal failure, Raynaud's syndrome, myasthenia gravis, thyrotoxicosis, depression, psoriasis, hypokalemia, in elderly patients and children.

What adverse reactions can Betapace (Sotalol) cause?

The medication can cause a variety of side effects such as general weakness, dizziness, headache, violation of sleep-wake cycle, nightmares, depression, anxiety, confusion, muscle weakness, tremor, blurred vision, dry eyes, sinus bradycardia, palpitation, conduction disturbance of the myocardium, worsening of the heart diseases, chest pains, dry mouth, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or constipation, abdominal pains, flatulence, digestive tract functions violations, nasal congestion, rhinitis, hyperkalemia, hypoglycemia, skin rash and itching, and others.

Since the possible adverse effects are quite diverse, it is important to give a call to your doctor to consult him or her in the occurrence of even the slightest discomfort after the pill intake.

With what medications the drug should not be combined?

First of all, you should not buy Generic Betapace (Sotalol) and use it if you already use MAO inhibitors and other medications also used to cope with arrhythmia. Allergens used for the immunotherapy or the extract of allergens used for skin probes increase the risk of systemic allergic reactions when administered along with Sotalol-based drugs. The drugs with iodine used intravenously also increase the risk of severe allergic reactions and even anaphylaxis. General anesthesia medications and other medications for the blood pressure lowering including diuretics can cause severe hypotension when combined with Betapace. The medication reduces the effectiveness of insulin and hypoglycemic drugs and clearance of lidocaine and xanthenes what leads to their elevated concentrations in the blood plasma. The hypotensive effect of the drug is reduced by the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, glucocorticoids and estrogens.

When combined with Methyldopa, Reserpine and Guanfacine, and other cardiac glycosides the risk of bradycardia, cardiac arrest and heart failure, increases significantly. Here are listed only some drugs with which Sotalol can interact negatively. Therefore, you need to consult your doctor before taking any drugs with Betapace or its Generics.

What should you do in the overdose with Betapace (Sotalol)?

The overdose causes dizziness, pronounced bradycardia, extremely lowered blood pressure, fainting, arrhythmia, cramps, bronchospasm, and other symptoms.

The treatment of symptoms includes gastric lavage, use of the activated charcoal, intravenous injection of Atropin, or even a temporary cardio stimulator, and so on. As you can see, the overdose should be treated in the hospital as the consequences can be deadly. Therefore, if you accidentally overdosed, call the ambulance immediately.

Is there a difference between the brand-name drug and the generic?

When you buy Generic Betapace (Sotalol) instead of the brand-name medication, you receive the same drug simply named differently and sold much cheaper. The reason for that is the drugs are made according to the same chemical formula and using the same components but are made by different pharmaceutical companies. Some of them chose not to advertise and promote their drugs and are able to sell them cheaper.

If you have concerns about safety of generics, you should know that they are released onto the market only after thorough tests for the compliance with the original formula, effectiveness, and safety.

Where to buy Betapace (Sotalol) online?

You can purchase the drug at your local drugstores or buy it from our online pharmacy and save both on the visits to your doctor and the medication itself. We sell the same drugs but cheaper because we have fewer operational expenses than your local pharmacies.

Generic Betapace (Sotalol) shipping by RXShopMD

If you order pills for $170 (or equivalent in other currency) or more per one order, you will enjoy free shipping. We ship our products all over the world via standard (14-25 days) and express (7-12 days) mail. Find out more about our shipping, returns, and loyalty programs in the FAQ section.