Capsaicin

Name: Capsaicin

Capsaicin Brand Names

Capsaicin may be found in some form under the following brand names:

  • Analgesic Balm with Capsaicin

  • Arth-RX

  • Arthricare for Women Moisturizing

  • Arthricare for Women Ultra Strength

  • Arthritis Formula

  • Arthur Itis

  • Axsain

  • Capsin

  • Capzasin Quick Relief

  • Capzasin-HP

  • Capzasin-HP Arthritis Formula

  • Capzasin-P

  • Cartilade

  • Castiva Warming

  • Dendracin Neurodendraxcin

  • Dolorac

  • Doloracin

  • Doloracin with Lidocaine

  • Dr. Oh Balm

  • Emu Essentials Pain Relieving Cream

  • Frankie Avalon's Zero Pain

  • Hot Spot

  • Icy Hot with Capsaicin

  • LidoPro

  • Medi-Derm

  • Medi-Derm with Lidocaine

  • Medrox

  • Menthac Arthritis Cream with Capsaicin

  • Overtime

  • Painazin-CP

  • Pure Relief

  • Qutenza

  • Rock Sauce

  • RT Capsin

  • Salonpas

  • Salonpas Gel-Patch

  • Sloan's Liniment

  • Transanosil

  • WellPatch

  • Xoten-C

  • ZIKS Pain Relief

  • Zostrix Diabetic Joint & Arthritis Pain Relief

  • Zostrix Neuropathy

  • Zostrix Sports

  • Zostrix-HP

Forms of Medication

Capsaicin is available in the following forms:

  • Topical Cream
  • Topical Gel
  • Topical Lotion
  • Topical Ointment
  • Topical Solution
  • Topical Spray

Onset of Action

OTC products (capsaicin 0.025% to 0.1%): 2 to 4 weeks of continuous therapy; Qutenza patch: 1 week after application

Half-Life Elimination

Topical patch (capsaicin 8%): 1.64 hours (Babbar 2009)

Dosing Pediatric

Muscle/joint pain: Topical: Patch:

0.025%, 0.03%, 0.0375%, 0.05% (Sinelee only): Children ≥12 years and Adolescents: Refer to adult dosing.

0.05% (Solaice only): Adolescents ≥16 years: Refer to adult dosing.

Administration

Topical products (cream, gel, liquid, lotion): Gently rub into painful area until thoroughly absorbed. Wash hands with soap and water immediately after applying (unless hands are part of the treatment area). If applying cream to hands, wait 30 minutes before washing hands.

Topical patch: Apply patch externally to clean and dry affected area. Remove protective film prior to application. May cut patch to desired size prior to removing the film (product specific). Do not use within 1 hour prior to a bath or immediately after bathing. Do not use with a heating pad.

Topical patch (Qutenza): Patch should only be applied by a health care provider. The treatment area must be identified and marked by a physician. May cut patch to match size/shape of treatment area. If necessary, excessive hair present on and surrounding the treatment area, may be clipped (not shaved). Prior to application, the treatment area should be cleansed with mild soap and water and dried thoroughly. The treatment area and surrounding 1 to 2 cm should be anesthetized with a topical anesthetic prior to patch application; keep the local anesthetic in place until the skin is anesthetized and then remove with a dry wipe; cleanse area again with soap/water, and dry thoroughly. Patch may then be applied to dry, intact skin within 2 hours of opening the patch; apply patch using nitrile gloves (latex gloves should not be used). During application, slowly peel back the release liner under the patch. Patch should remain in place for 60 minutes. Remove patches gently and slowly. Following patch removal, apply cleansing gel to the treatment area and leave in place for at least 1 minute. Remove cleansing gel with a dry wipe and gently wash the area with mild soap and water and dry thoroughly. All treatment materials should be disposed of according to biomedical waste procedures.

Drug Interactions

There are no known significant interactions.

Precautions

Consult your pharmacist.

Interactions

Consult your pharmacist.

Keep a list of all your medications with you, and share the list with your doctor and pharmacist.

Overdose

If someone has overdosed and has serious symptoms such as passing out or trouble breathing, call 911. Otherwise, call a poison control center right away. US residents can call their local poison control center at 1-800-222-1222. Canada residents can call a provincial poison control center.

Notes

No monograph available at this time.

Missed Dose

Consult your pharmacist.

Storage

Consult your pharmacist.

Do not flush medications down the toilet or pour them into a drain unless instructed to do so. Properly discard this product when it is expired or no longer needed. Consult your pharmacist or local waste disposal company for more details about how to safely discard your product.

Information last revised July 2016. Copyright(c) 2016 First Databank, Inc.

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