May 16 2010
Active Ingredients of Most Creams and Ointments
Buying any products from pharmacies or health stores does not mean it is 100 percent safe to the user. It may cure the diseases being treated but it sometimes causes side effects or complications. As a buyer, you have to be very careful in purchasing medications. A thorough research on the active ingredients of these drugs must be done first so that you will only purchase those products which are safe and suits your health needs. This include over the counter ointments and creams used to treat peri-anal conditions such as anal itching and hemorrhoids.
Since there are some people who are sensitive to some chemicals and ingredients, it is recommended to read first the instructions and contra-indications before applying or taking any medications. This will help avoid complications. And of course always consult your doctor first even if you are just using an over the counter cream which does not require any prescriptions.
Creams and ointments used to relieve pain, burning, and itching in the peri-anal area usually contains local anesthetic and analgesics. Common compounds found in analgesics are menthol, camphor and juniper tar. You have to take note that menthol should not be greater than 1% and camphor should not exceed 3% of the total composition of the product.
For local anesthetics, you will find these; benzocaine and benzyl alcohol which usually ranges from 5% to 20%. Other creams and ointments may contain dibucaine, dyclonine, lidocaine, pramoxine, and tetracaine. You should be careful in administering these anesthetics to avoid complications. Over-use or improper use can lead to allergic reactions like burning and itching. Doctors recommend that the application of these local anesthetics should be limited to the peri-anal area and lower anal canal only.
There are also some hemorrhoid creams and ointments that serves as protectants. They contain aluminum hydroxide gel, cocoa butter, glycerin, kaolin, lanolin, mineral oil, starch, white petrolatum, zinc oxide, calamine, cod liver oil or shark liver oil. Protectants serves as a barrier to irritants such as when passing stool. It also helps in reducing the irritation, itching, burning and pain.
Other products used to treat hemorrhoids and other anal conditions contain astringents. This promotes dryness of the skin which then helps alleviate itching and pain. Some of the common ingredients are calamine, zinc oxide and witch hazel extracts.
If inflammation is present in the anal area, your doctor may recommend corticosteroids. This will help reduce inflammation but it should only be used for not more than 2 weeks. Only products with lower dosages of conticosteroid should be used.
Vasoconstrictors can also be used to reduce the swelling in the anal area. These compounds do have similar effects with anesthetics because it can also reduce pain and itching. Examples of vasoconstrictors are ephedrine sulfate, epinephrine and phenylephrine. High dosage of these ingredients will cause many side effects such as high blood pressure, tremor, sleeplessness and many others.
So if you want to treat your hemorrhoids and other anal conditions, please make it sure that there is a go signal from your doctor to use these creams and ointments to avoid allergic reactions and complications.
[...] who experience fissure apply cream or ointment especially designed for this condition to at least alleviate the symptoms. Another effective remedy [...]
[...] Look at the ingredients of these over-the-counter hemorrhoid treatments. Make it sure that you are not allergic to some its ingredients whether herbal or the synthetic ones. Hemorroid products that can be purchased at any health store are in the form of tablets, tonic, medicated pads, creams and ointments. Some of these may interact with other medications or cause allergic reactions. We have an article on the common ingredients in hemorrhoid products, you can access it here. [...]