Scopolamine, or also known as Tranko Buscas is a medication that is used to treat various conditions. It can be used for motion sickness, nausea, and vomiting. Additionally, it can also be used to relieve certain types of pain. It is important to know the side effects of scopolamine before taking it. This medication can cause some serious side effects if not taken as prescribed by a doctor. Read on to learn more about scopolamine and its uses.
Is scopolamine addictive?
There is no clear evidence that scopolamine is addictive. However, there are reports of people becoming dependent on scopolamine after using it for a long time. It’s important to note that these reports are anecdotal, and more research is needed to determine whether or not scopolamine is truly addictive.
What Is Scopolamine?
Scopolamine, also known as hyoscine or Devil’s Breath, is a naturally occurring or chemically produced tropane alkaloid and anticholinergic drug that is used to treat motion sickness and postoperative nausea and vomiting. It is also applied before surgery to lower saliva. After around 20 minutes, effects begin and can last up to 8 hours when used by injection. It may also be taken orally and in the form of a transdermal patch.
It is produced synthetically from atropine, which is a naturally occurring chemical found in plants such as belladonna and deadly nightshade. Atropine is used medically to treat a number of conditions such as nausea, vomiting, and motion sickness. It is used therapeutically to reduce airway secretions and also as a sedative. It can be administered orally, topically, or by injection.
It has been used for anesthesia since the early 1800s. Around 1900, it was first proposed for and then utilized for years to induce amnesia and synergistic pain alleviation during childbirth by combining both scopolamine and morphine. The synergistic condition known as “twilight sleep” was produced by the combination of these alkaloids.
It is a deliriant that has been used as a psychoactive drug since ancient times due to its antimuscarinic-induced hallucinogenic effects, which are produced by plants from the nightshade family. It is the trade name for a type of nightshade known as Scopolia, while hyoscine is derived from Hyoscyamus niger, another kind. It’s on the World Health Organization’s List of Essential Medicines.
Uses:
The medical uses of this drug include reducing motion sickness, preventing nausea and vomiting after surgery, and treating irritable bowel syndrome. The drug is also used as a premedication before certain medical procedures to reduce the risk of vomiting.
“Twilight sleep” is a combination of general anesthesia and morphine given to women during labor. It was popularized in the early 1900s, but has since been discontinued because of the risks associated with it. Patients were first given an intramuscular shot of 1/150 grain scopolamine and 1/2 grain of morphine in the Freiburg method, which is regarded the gold standard for twilight births. A second scopolamine injection of the same quantity was administered 45 minutes later.
Some of the risks associated with “twilight sleep” include: nausea and vomiting, dizziness, difficulty breathing, extreme drowsiness, and an increased risk for maternal and fetal mortality.
Side Effects:
The side effects of Scopolamine can include: blurred vision, dry mouth and throat, difficulty urinating, constipation, drowsiness, confusion, memory problems, hallucinations, and delirium. In some cases it can also cause nausea and vomiting. If you experience any of these side effects while taking Scopolamine, contact your doctor immediately.
A scopolamine overdose can cause a central nervous system depression, which is treated with the anticholinergic drug physostigmine, a cholinergic medication that easily passes through the blood-brain barrier. Other than this kind support, gastric lavage and induced emesis (vomiting) are frequently advised as treatments for oral overdoses. Overdose symptoms include:
- Photophobia
- Blurred vision
- Inhibition of gastrointestinal motility
- Tachycardia
- Arrhythmia
- Cheyne-Stokes respiration
- Urinary retention
- Drowsiness or paradoxical reaction, which can present with hallucinations
- Dry mouth
- Skin reddening
