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Tamsulosin and Finasteride is an FDA-approved combined medication. This medicine is used in people with benign prostatic hyperplasia. This helps you relieve certain symptoms of the condition.
What condition do Tamsulosin and Finasteride treat?
Tamsulosin and Finasteride is prescription medicine used to treat an enlarged prostate gland called benign prostatic hyperplasia. The prostate gland usually becomes larger in older men. It is located close to the bladder. As a result, its enlargement may cause complications with passing urine. Common symptoms of this type of condition include:
- A feeling that your bladder is not quite empty
- Dribbling urine
- Taking longer at the toilet
- Having to wait before your urine starts to flow
How do Tamsulosin and Finasteride work?
Tamsulosin is an alpha-blocker that works by hindering alpha receptors that are in the muscle specifically inside the prostate gland. For this reason, it relaxes the muscle in the prostate. This relieves the pressure on the urethra and lets the urine flow easily past the prostate gland. As a result, it makes it easier to empty the bladder and pass urine.
Finasteride is a type of medication known as a 5-alpha reductase inhibitor that works by blocking the action of an enzyme in the body called 5-alpha reductase. 5-alpha reductase is accountable for converting the male hormone testosterone into a more active form called dihydrotestosterone (DHT). The benign prostatic hyperplasia is reliant on testosterone being changed to DHT within the prostate gland. By blocking the enzyme 5-alpha reductase, this drug stops the formation of DHT and helps shrink the prostate. Shrinking the prostate relieves the pressure on the urethra and bladder and lets the urine flow freely through the urethra past the prostate.
What is the dosage of Tamsulosin and Finasteride?
Things to know before taking a dose of this medication:
- If you have any blood tests to check the level of prostate–specific antigen in your blood, make sure that your doctor knows that you are taking this drug. Taking this drug and having the test may affect its result.
- Do not donate blood for at least 4 weeks after you stop taking or while you are having treatment with this medicine.
- Pregnant women should not handle broken or crushed substances of this drug. If it is absorbed through the skin, it can cause abnormalities in developing a baby.
The recommended dosage for this prescription is based on your medical condition and response. However, the usual dose is 5 mg taken once a day. You may take each dose with or without food. How often and how long you take this medicine depends on the strength and times daily you will take a dose. Take this drug exactly as it is prescribed by your doctor. Try to take each dose at the same time each day. It will help you remember to take your medication regularly. If you missed a dose, take it when you remember. Do not take two doses to make up for the missed one. If you often missed a dose, call your doctor.
What are the precautions in using Tamsulosin and Finasteride?
- Keep your regular appointments with your doctor to check on your progress.
- Consider lessening or stopping the amount of alcohol and caffeine you drink. These can make your symptoms worse. Drinking less of these may benefit you.
- Stopping smoking may significantly improve your symptoms especially if you are a smoker and taking this medicine. Nicotine can irritate your bladder. You may ask your doctor for advice on quitting.
- Each time you get a new supply of your drug from a pharmacy, make sure they look the same as you have before. There is a low-dose brand of this prescription to treat other conditions. If you are not sure if you have the correct drug, let your pharmacist check it for you.
- Inform your doctor if you ever had an allergic reaction to this drug. It is also important to tell that you have allergies.
- Tell your doctor or pharmacists if you are using or taking any other medications. This includes any medications you are taking without a prescription, herbal supplements, or vitamins.
- If you experience any other symptoms which you think may be due to the drug, call your doctor right away for further advice.
