Page 225 - COMMUNITY PHARMACY PRACTICE

02/04/2024

q Topical Drugs 454

• Topical drugs are applied directly to the skin as a patch , gel ,
cream or spray and have their pharmacologic activity directly
under the skin site without any significant amount of drug
entering the blood stream

• Several NSAIDs are available for topical application commonly
use are

diclofenac (Voltaren), ibuprofen and ketoprofen

• Currently only one topical drug has an FDA approved indication
for pain treatment that drug is topical lidocaine patch Which is
a local aesthetic (Lidoderm) for the treatment of post herpetic
neuralgia .this patch can be tried for many types of nerve pain.

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• A widely used topical pain reliever is capsaicin , which is
available as an over the counter cream or gel and used to treat
nerve pain and arthritis pain.

qOther Topical drugs

• Counter-irritants. These are products that contain substances
such as menthol, eucalyptus, or oil of
wintergreen that irritate nerve endings,

producing a "cool" feeling on the skin and
distracting the brain from deeper sources of pain.
Frost spray is an example of a counter-irritant.

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