Beta Blockers are medicines that affect the body's response to certain
nerve impulses. This, in turn, decreases the force and rate of the heart's
contractions, which lowers blood pressure and reduces the heart's demand for
oxygen.
Purpose
The main use of Beta Blockers is to treat high blood pressure. Some also
are used to relieve the type of chest pain called Angina or to prevent heart
attacks in people who already have had one heart attack. These drugs may
also be prescribed for other conditions, such as migraine, tremors, and
irregular heart beat. In eye drop form, they are used to treat certain kinds
of glaucoma.
Description
Beta Blockers, also known as Beta-adrenergic Blockers, are available only
with a physician's prescription. The come in capsule, tablet, liquid, and
injectable forms. Some common Beta Blockers are Atenolol (Tenormin),
Metoprolol (Lopressor), Nadolol (Corgard), Propranolol (Inderal), and
Timolol (Blocadren). Timolol and certain other Beta Blockers are also sold
in eye drop form for treating Glaucoma. Eye drops that contain Beta Blockers
include Betaxolol (Betoptic), Cartelol (Ocupress), and Timolol (Timoptic).