Loperamide, sold under the brand name Imodium, among others,[1] is a medication of the opioid receptor agonist class used to decrease the frequency of diarrhea.[4] It is often used for this purpose in irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease and short bowel syndrome.[4] It is not recommended for those with blood in the stool, mucus in the stool, or fevers.[4] The medication is taken by mouth.[4]
Common side effects include abdominal pain, constipation, sleepiness, vomiting, and a dry mouth.[4] It may increase the risk of toxic megacolon.[4] Loperamide's safety in pregnancy is unclear, but no evidence of harm has been found.[5] It appears to be safe in breastfeeding.[6] It is an opioid with no significant absorption from the gut and does not cross the blood–brain barrier when used at normal doses.[7] It works by slowing the contractions of the intestines.[4]
Loperamide was first made in 1969 and used medically in 1976.[8] It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines.[9] Loperamide is available as a generic medication.[4][10] In 2021, it was the 287th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 700,000 prescriptions.[11][12]
^ abDrugs.com International brands for loperamide Archived 23 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine Page accessed 4 September 2015
^Anvisa (31 March 2023). "RDC Nº 784 - Listas de Substâncias Entorpecentes, Psicotrópicas, Precursoras e Outras sob Controle Especial" [Collegiate Board Resolution No. 784 - Lists of Narcotic, Psychotropic, Precursor, and Other Substances under Special Control] (in Brazilian Portuguese). Diário Oficial da União (published 4 April 2023). Archived from the original on 3 August 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
^"Loperamide hydrochloride capsule". DailyMed. 30 September 2022. Archived from the original on 14 September 2023. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
^ abcdefghi"Loperamide Hydrochloride". The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Archived from the original on 7 September 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
^"Prescribing medicines in pregnancy database". Australian Government. 3 March 2014. Archived from the original on 8 April 2014. Retrieved 22 April 2014.
^"Loperamide use while Breastfeeding". Archived from the original on 8 September 2015. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
^"loperamide hydrochloride". NCI Drug Dictionary. 2 February 2011. Archived from the original on 7 September 2015. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
^Patrick GL (2013). An introduction to medicinal chemistry (Fifth ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 644. ISBN 9780199697397. Archived from the original on 14 January 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
^World Health Organization (2021). World Health Organization model list of essential medicines: 22nd list (2021). Geneva: World Health Organization. hdl:10665/345533. WHO/MHP/HPS/EML/2021.02.
^Hamilton RJ (2013). Tarascon pocket pharmacopoeia (14 ed.). [Sudbury, Mass.]: Jones & Bartlett Learning. p. 217. ISBN 9781449673611. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016.
^"The Top 300 of 2021". ClinCalc. Archived from the original on 15 January 2024. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
^"Loperamide - Drug Usage Statistics". ClinCalc. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
Loperamide, sold under the brand name Imodium, among others, is a medication of the opioid receptor agonist class used to decrease the frequency of diarrhea...
precursor of normethadone with norpethidine. Loperamide (Imodium) and bezitramide are analogs. Like loperamide, it has a methadone-like structure and a piperidine...
agents are drugs used to alleviate the symptoms of diarrhea. These include loperamide (Imodium), bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto-Bismol), diphenoxylate with atropine...
(for example, infection or malabsorption), but it does decrease motility. Examples include diphenoxylate, loperamide, and eluxadoline. Propulsive v t e...
led some people to try treatments with limited evidence. At high doses, loperamide has been reported by some drug users to alleviate opioid withdrawal syndrome...
this way. A notable opioid for the purpose of relief of diarrhoea is loperamide which is only an agonist of the μ opioid receptors in the large intestine...
Entamoeba histolytica and Shigella. It may also be caused by the use of loperamide. Abdominal bloating Abdominal pain Abdominal tenderness Dehydration Fever...
travelling, and those who grow specific bacteria or parasites in their stool. Loperamide may help decrease the number of bowel movements but is not recommended...
developing world. While medications used to decrease diarrhea such as loperamide are not recommended on their own, they may be used together with antibiotics...
opioids. Opioid drugs include partial agonists, like the anti-diarrhea drug loperamide and antagonists like naloxegol for opioid-induced constipation, which...
acute diarrhea in children and adults and has better tolerability than loperamide, as it causes less constipation and flatulence. Several guidelines have...
Tariq S, Ahmad HR (2017). "Antibiotic Effects of Loperamide: Homology of Human Targets of Loperamide with Targets in Acanthamoeba spp". Recent Patents...
are (name may differ): Imodium (against diarrhoea. Active substance: loperamide) Motilium (against flatulence and bowel impairments. Active substance:...
medication may be effective in slowing the rate of diarrhea, including Loperamide. Nitazoxanide is the only drug approved for the treatment of cryptosporidiosis...
parenteral nutrition. Medications used may include antibiotics, antacids, loperamide, teduglutide, and growth hormone. Different types of surgery, including...
with the symptoms; however, medications that slow the bowels such as loperamide are not recommended. In severe cases antibiotics may be used but resistance...
Handbook 2017. Australian Medicines Handbook Pty Ltd; Adelaide. 2017. "Loperamide Hydrochloride". The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Archived...
medium term use and is not intended as a life-long therapy. The medication loperamide may be used to help with diarrhea while laxatives may be used to help...
alleviating abdominal pain and bloating. Drug interventions, such as laxatives, loperamide, and lubiprostone are applied to relieve intense symptoms including diarrhea...
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