On this episode of the Real Life Pharmacology podcast, I’m going to cover important practice pearls on skeletal muscle relaxants. Important medications that will be covered in this podcast include baclofen, cyclobenzaprine, tizanidine, and diazepam.
This episode is sponsored by Freed – Freed is an amazing time saver for busy healthcare professionals! It listens, transcribes, and writes medical notes for you! Go check them out and support our sponsor!
Robitussin (Guaifenesin) is a medication that is used as a cough suppressant. It is often combined with numerous other medications so patients need to pay attention
Valium (diazepam) is a benzodiazepine used to treat anxiety or seizures. Falls, dizziness, confusion, and sedation are common adverse effects.
Viagra (sildenafil) makes the list at number 73. This medication is a PDE-5 inhibitor that can be used for erectile dysfunction.
Bactroban (mupirocin) is a topical antibiotic that can be used for superficial skin infections.
Januvia (Sitagliptin) is a DPP4 inhibitor used for treating hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes. It doesn’t reduce A1C quite as much as other diabetes medications like SGLT2 inhibitors and GLP-1 agonists.
Diazepam has numerous dosage forms. There are rectal, injectable, and oral formulations of the drug that are commonly used in clinical practice.
Diazepam has 2 major metabolic pathways. It is broken down primarily by CYP3A4 and CYP2C19, leaving open the potential for numerous drug interactions. I discuss this further in the podcast.
Diazepam is on the Beers list because it has a tendency to accumulate in the geriatric patient population and cause adverse effects like sedation, confusion, and falls.
Respiratory depression, coma, and death are significantly more likely in overdose situations where opioids are used in combination with benzodiazepines like diazepam.
