pepcid

[jclifton]

Somewhere in my reading about IC, I've come across something that said that Pepcid - the acid reducer - is a type of antihistamine, and that it is useful for treating IC. Can someone tell me if this is true, how it works, how it should be taken, etc. I have acid reflux and I take a daily dose of Nexium, but that seems to make no difference in the IC. Thanks.

[SrMaggie]

I went to the Pepcid site. These are the ingredients in Pepcid. I don't know if any of these are antihistamines. What do you think?
Active Ingredient
Famotidine ..........................
Purpose
Acid reducer

Pepcid AC
- Gelcaps Active Ingredient
Famotidine 10 mg
(in each gelcap) Inactive Ingredients
Hydroxypropyl cellulose, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, microcrystalline cellulose, red iron oxide, starch, talc, titanium dioxide.
- Tablets Famotidine 10 mg
(in each tablet) Hydroxypropyl cellulose, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, microcrystalline cellulose, red iron oxide, starch, talc, titanium dioxide.

My thought might be that it nutralizes acid and possibly make the urine less acidy?
Maggie

[jclifton]

Thanks for your response. Here is one of the items I read about it:

Famotidine is a special antihistamine as are its cousins cimetidine (Tagamet HB) and Ranitidine (Zantac). They are not useful in combating allergic symptoms where histamine causes its unpleasant effects by binding so-called “H1” receptors. Instead they bind to histamine receptors in the stomach called “H2” receptors.
and also...
H2 blockers include cimetidine (Tagamet), ranitidine (Zantac), nizatidine (Axid), and famotidine (Pepcid). Tagamet and Pepcid are available over the counter. By blocking these H2 receptors in the gut, these medications reduce stomach acid secretions and, thus, stomach pain. Studies with one of these H2 blockers, cimetidine, showed it reduced bladder pain as well, maybe because of the histamine-blocking action. But why it works in IC really isn’t so clear. In two small studies (one with 9 and one with 14 patients), Tagamet reduced bladder pain for 40 to 60 percent of the IC patients.

I'd just like to hear from a real person who got some results from taking either pepcid or zantac or tagamet. Or tried them and didn't get any relief.

[Janie Miranda]

Well, I use tagemet, zantac and Prilosec OTc pretty often for my acid reflux and I believe they have been a contributing factor to my remission. I can't say for sure though. It is worth a try. Make sure you talk to your doctor before adding them though, like every medicine they can have potential side effects. In fact when I talked to a pharmacist recently he suggested I take less Tagamet and try the Prilosec OTC because Tagamet has more risks. Tagamet seemed to help my IC though.

[alwayspeeing]

Before I was diagnosed with Ic my doctor had put me on ranitidine for other reasons, and I had not really noticed my bladder back then come to think of it, since coming off the ranitidine 2-3 years ago, my life with my bladder pain has made the last 3 years of my life so far, miserable!! Mind you I have always had bladder problems since the age of 16, now 32 years of age. I think I'll do a little experimenting and see if the ranitidine will help me again, as I have been in the worst pain ever since my hubby gifted me with an exercise bike, 2 months ago:mad: Currently am taking just macrobid and some days d mannose, which helped a bit, and am waiting to see my uro on february 25, hope he can help:pray: