Atropine ophthalmic and Scopolamine Hydrobromide

• Generic Name: atropine ophthalmic
• Dosage Forms: n.a.
• Other Brand Names: Atropine-1, Isopto Atropine, Atropisol, Ocu-Tropine, Atropine Care, Atrosulf-1, Atropin-Care

Atropine causes the muscles in your eye to become relaxed. This widens (dilates) your pupil so that it will not respond to light.

Atropine ophthalmic (for the eye) is used to dilate your pupils when you have an inflammatory condition or in postsurgery situations in which this effect may be helpful.

Atropine ophthalmic is also used in people with a condition called amblyopia (sometimes called "lazy eye"). Atropine ophthalmic can be placed into the stronger eye to temporarily blur the vision in that eye. This helps strengthen the weaker eye because the brain will force that eye to work harder to focus.

Atropine ophthalmic may also be used for purposes other than those listed in this medication guide.

• Generic Name: scopolamine
• Dosage Forms: n.a.
• Other Brand Names: Transderm-Scop

Prevention of motion-induced nausea and vomiting; considered most effective drug for this use.

Oral or IM administration usually reserved for patients exposed to short periods of intense motion or those highly susceptible to motion because these routes have short duration of effect and high incidence of adverse effects.

Transdermal administration is effective and has fewer adverse effects and increased duration compared with oral administration.

Used transdermally for prevention of nausea and vomiting associated with recovery from anesthesia and surgery, but efficacy is equivocal.

Has been used preoperatively to inhibit salivation and excessive respiratory tract secretions, but use of general anesthetics (e.g., thiopental [no longer commercially available in the US], halothane) that do not stimulate secretions has reduced the need for this use.

Used preoperatively and in obstetrics in conjunction with analgesics or sedatives to produce tranquilization and amnesia; however, benzodiazepines may be preferred.

Has greater sedative, antisecretory (e.g., on respiratory secretions), and antiemetic effects than atropine; however, less effective than atropine in preventing intraoperative cholinergic effects (e.g., cardiac arrhythmias, hypotension, bradycardia).

Has been used for symptomatic treatment of parkinsonian syndrome; however, antimuscarinincs generally have been replaced with dopaminergic drugs.