PROCAINE Overview Information
Procaine is a chemical. People use it for medicine. Be careful not to confuse the procaine used by mouth with the prescription procaine given by injection only under the supervision of a healthcare professional.
Procaine is taken by mouth or given as a shot for arthritis, “hardening of the arteries” in the brain (cerebral atherosclerosis), dementia, depression, hair loss, high blood pressure, and sexual performance problems.
As a prescription-only injection, procaine is used for local anesthesia.
How does it work?
Procaine works as an anesthetic when injected. However, procaine doesn’t get absorbed well when it is taken by mouth. It is unclear how it might work for medicinal uses when taken by mouth.
- Pain, when used as a prescription shot. Procaine injection is an FDA-approved prescription product used as a local anesthetic.
- “Hardening of the arteries” in the brain (cerebral atherosclerosis).
- Hair loss.
- High blood pressure.
- Sexual problems.
- Other conditions.
PROCAINE Side Effects & Safety
It is not known whether procaine is safe when taken by mouth. It can cause some side effects including heartburn, migraines, and a serious condition called systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). SLE causes a variety of symptoms including joint pain, rashes, lung problems, and many other symptoms.
Procaine is safe when the prescription-only product is given as a shot by a healthcare professional as a local anesthetic.
Special Precautions & Warnings:Pregnancy and breast-feeding: It’s UNSAFE to use procaine for self-medication if you are pregnant. If you are breast-feeding, it is also best to avoid using procaine. Not enough is known about how it might affect the nursing infant.
Myasthenia gravis, a progressive disease that weakens the muscles: If you have myasthenia gravis, you should not be given procaine intravenously (by IV).
Pseudocholinesterase deficiency, an inherited disorder: People with this disorder are sensitive to certain anesthetic drugs. If you have this disorder, you should not be given procaine by injection.
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE): Procaine might make this condition worse. Don’t use procaine if you have SLE.
Major Interaction Do not take this combination
- Digoxin (Lanoxin) interacts with PROCAINE
Digoxin (Lanoxin) helps the heart beat more strongly. Digoxin (Lanoxin) can also control how fast the heart beats. Getting a procaine injection can slow the heartbeat. Taking digoxin with procaine might cause your heartbeat to be too slow.
- Muscle relaxants interacts with PROCAINE
Procaine is given as a shot to numb pain. Taking procaine with some muscle relaxants can cause the numbing to last too long. Before getting a procaine injection tell your doctor if you are taking any muscle relaxants.
Some of these muscle relaxants include atracurium (Tracrium), pancuronium (Pavulon), succinylcholine (Anectine), and others.
- Succinylcholine interacts with PROCAINE
Procaine is injected and used to numb pain. Taking procaine with succinylcholine can cause the numbing to last too long.
Moderate Interaction Be cautious with this combination
- Aminosalicylic acid interacts with PROCAINE
The body breaks down procaine to get rid of it. Procaine is broken down to a chemical called aminobenzoic acid. Aminobenzoic acid might decrease the effectiveness of aminosalicylic acid. Taking procaine along with aminosalicylic acid might decrease the effectiveness of aminosalicylic acid.
- Antibiotics (Sulfonamide antibiotics) interacts with PROCAINE
The body changes procaine to para-aminobenzoic acid (PABA). PABA can decrease the effectiveness of certain antibiotics called sulfonamides.
Some of these antibiotics include sulfamethoxazole (Gantanol), sulfasalazine (Azulfidine), sulfisoxazole (Gantrisin), and trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (Bactrim, Septra).
The following doses have been studied in scientific research:
- For pain: The prescription-only product is given as a shot by a healthcare professional as a local anesthetic.