Rabeprazole: Complete solution for Gastrointestinal Disorder

Rabeprazoletreats the symptoms of Gastro esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) or gastrointestinal disorder. This is a generic drug that belongs to the class of anti-secretary compound or proton pump inhibitors (PPI). It readily decreases and heals the excessive acid formation in the stomach and esophagus. Hence, some major symptoms like heartburn, acid reflux, burning pain in the stomach, and problems with swallowing are relieved. Capsule and tablet are two oral routes of administration. Both are delayed-release or slowly released inside the body. The doctor prescribes this drug to adults and children as well (1).

Generic Name: Rabeprazole

Brand Name: AcipHex, AcipHex Sprinkle

Average: 359.443

Monoisotopic: 359.130362243

Chemical Formula: C18H21N3O3S

Table of Contents

Diseases Cured & Dosages

Some common diseases cured by this PPI are as followings:-

Zollinger-Ellison Syndrome – Due to gastrinoma, an excessive gastric hormone is released, which stimulates the stomach to produce acid and thus cause a Peptic Ulcer.
Helicobacter Pylori Infection – H. Pylori is a bacteria that resides inside the digestive tract, which infects the stomach and causes acid to be secreted, which in turn may lead to an ulcer. This creates a pain and burning sensation.
Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease – It refers to the ailment that causes the acid formed in the stomach to flow back to the esophagus. This may cause ulcer.
- Peptic Ulcer Diseases –There are two types of ulcer in this disease. The first is the Duodenal Rlcer and other one is Gastric Ulcer.
Erosive Esophagitis – Inflammation in the esophagus causes difficulty in swallowing, burning sensation, and cough (2).

Dose for adults-

Disease	Dose for Adults	Duration
Zollinger-Elison Syndrome	60mg tab/capsule twice daily	1 year
H.Pylori Infection	20mg tab/capsule twice daily with antibiotic	7 days
Gastro Esophageal Reflux	10mg tab/capsule twice daily	12 weeks
GRD	20mg tab/capsule once daily	4 weeks
Duodenal Ulcer Prophylaxis	20mg tab/capsule once daily	12 months
Erosive Esophagitis	20mg tab/capsule once daily	4 – 8 weeks

Dose for Children

For Pediatric Patients
Age	Weight	Dose	Duration
1-11 years	< 15 kg	5mg – 10mg	Max up to 12 weeks
1-11 years	> 15 kg	10 mg	Max up to 12 weeks
12 years/ Older	Variable	20 mg	Max up to 8 weeks

Consult doctor before taking any medicine.

How to Take This Drug

Don’t crush or chew or split the dose form. Rabeprazole tablets can be taken before or after food (as advised by Doctor). Capsule or granules may be taken 30 min before taking food. Patients may open the capsule and sprinkle the granules on soft food that is at a colder or at room temperature. A small quantity of water may also be used to sprinkle the granules in the capsule. Within 15 minutes of preparation the entire dose must be consumed (3).

Mechanism and Action on Diseases

This druginhibits H⁺/K⁺ ATPase or hydrogen-potassium adenosine triphosphatase pump that resides on the secretory surface of the gastric parietal cell. On the gastric parietal cell, Rabeprazole gets protonated, accumulated, and gets transformed into active sulfonamide. Hence gastric HCL production gets decreased. Rabeprazole dosage treats GERD by reducing acid reflux. It also controls the aggravation of peptic ulcers (4).

The concentration of the drug is absorbed in the body into two halves within1-2 hours and the first half gets absorbed. This drug gets metabolized in the liver and excreted by the kidney.

Highlighted Points about the drug

Rabeprazole cause a kidney disorder. Patients must inform the doctor, in case they feel any problem in urination or blood with urine when consuming Rabeprazole gastro-resistant tablets.

Also, the doctor must be informed, in case the patient gets diarrhea, lupus or skin rash while taking this medications,as these are signs of a new infection.

Patients with the following disorders must update the doctor before taking this medication:-

Liver disease.
Low bone mineral density or Osteoporosis.
Autoimmune disorder.
Low magnesium level in the blood.
Low vitamin B12

A pregnant lady and nursing mother must take doctor’s advice before taking this medicine.

Side Effects of Rabeprazole

Stomach pain or Diarrhea.
Joint pain
Convulsion
Kidney problem
Skin rash
Dizziness, irregular heart rate, tremors, jittery, spasm pain, and muscle pain.
Bleeding from nose, gums, urine, stool, etc.
Nausea, vomiting
Constipation

Extreme Reaction with Other Drugs

Following is the list of drugs, which may interact with Rabeprazole Sodium(5):-

Took More Than What is Prescribed

No problem if it is just one or two extra doses. However, if experiencing the following symptoms, patients must inform the doctor.

Flushed skin
Sweating
Skipped heartbeat
Drowsiness
blurred vision
Agitation

What If Any Dose is Missed Out

In case the patient is on a single dose per day, and skips any dose then they must take the missed dose within a gap of at least 12 hours before the next dose.
In casethe patient is on double dose per day, and skips any dose then they must take the missed dose within a gap of at least 4 hours before the next dose.

In case the mentioned duration between the two doses is not maintained, then that missed dose can be skipped completely.

Patients are advised not to self-medicate and follow doctor’s advice only.

Disclaimer:

Anzen Exports’ blog posts are based just on our research from cited websites. To be best informed, we advise consulting a doctor about an ingredient or medicine prior to taking it.

Reference:-

Website -https://www.drugs.com/mtm/rabeprazole.html#:~:text=Rabeprazole%20is%20a%20proton%20pump,at%20least%201%20year%20old.

Date – 15^th June 2020

Website – https://www.drugs.com/dosage/rabeprazole.html

Date – 31^st Oct 2018

Website – https://www.drugs.com/dosage/rabeprazole.html

Date – 31^st Oct 2018

Drug Bank

Website – https://www.drugbank.ca/drugs/DB01129

Mayo Clinic

Website – https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements/rabeprazole-oral-route/side-effects/drg-20066981?p=1