

The drug is usually recommended for severe stings from the Indian red scorpion. Prazosin is used off-label in the treatment of insomnia and can produce sedative effects.

Subsequent reviews indicate prazosin is effective in improving sleep quality and treating nightmares related to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Raskind and colleagues discovered that prazosin appeared to be effective in reducing nightmares. ĭuring its use for urinary hesitancy in military veterans in the 1990s, Murray A. Although not a first-line choice for either hypertension or benign prostatic hyperplasia, it is a choice for people who present with both problems concomitantly.

Prazosin is also useful in treating urinary hesitancy associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia, blocking α 1-adrenergic receptors, which control constriction of both the prostate and urethra. The antihypertensive characteristics of prazosin make it a second-line choice for the treatment of high blood pressure. The heart rate and contractility go back down over time and blood pressure decreases. The blood pressure lowering effect becomes apparent when prazosin is taken for longer periods of time. When prazosin is started, however, heart rate and contractility can increase in order to maintain the pre-treatment blood pressures because the body has reached homeostasis at its abnormally high blood pressure. Prazosin is active after taken by mouth and has a minimal effect on cardiac function due to its α 1-adrenergic receptor selectivity. In 2020, it was the 190th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 2 million prescriptions. Prazosin was patented in 1965 and came into medical use in 1974. How it works in PTSD is not entirely clear. It works to decrease blood pressure by dilating blood vessels and helps with an enlarged prostate by relaxing the outflow of the bladder. Prazosin is a non-selective inverse agonist of the α 1-adrenergic receptors. Serious side effects may include low blood pressure with standing and depression. Ĭommon side effects include dizziness, sleepiness, nausea, and heart palpitations. Other uses may include heart failure and Raynaud syndrome. It is a less preferred treatment of high blood pressure. Prazosin, sold under the brand name Minipress among others, is a medication used to treat high blood pressure, symptoms of an enlarged prostate, and nightmares related to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
