Pyridostigmine
Pyridostigmine is a cholinesterase inhibitor used in myasthenia gravis, sold here as Mestinon 60mg tablets that help nerve signals reach tired muscles.
Why pyridostigmine is used in myasthenia gravis
In myasthenia gravis the immune system damages the junction where a nerve meets a muscle, and the message telling the muscle to contract gets through faintly. Muscles tire fast: eyelids droop, chewing and swallowing turn into hard work, speech can slur and the arms and legs weaken. Pyridostigmine is a cholinergic medicine. It stops an enzyme from clearing acetylcholine, the chemical messenger that crosses the junction, so more of it stays available and the message lands more reliably. The immune attack itself carries on unchanged; the tablet eases the weakness without treating its cause.
Fitting doses into the day
Pyridostigmine comes as ordinary tablets, long-acting tablets and an oral liquid. What is sold here, Mestinon, is the ordinary 60mg tablet — the form taken once, twice or several times a day, with long-acting tablets taken less often. Long-acting tablets have to be swallowed whole; chewing or crushing one lets the dose out too fast.
Side effects worth knowing about
Most complaints come from acetylcholine building up in places other than the muscle junction: nausea, diarrhoea or vomiting, drooling, cold sweats, blurred vision, a more frequent urge to urinate, and muscle cramps or weakness. These often ease as the body settles into the medicine. A smaller group of reactions is serious: severe itching, a rash or hives, slurred speech, confusion, a seizure or difficulty breathing need emergency treatment.
Mestinon 60mg tablets
Mestinon is pyridostigmine as a plain immediate-release tablet, 60mg, the version dosed through the day rather than the long-acting one. It sits with the other nerve and muscle medicines in Neurology.
Looking after the tablets
Tablets keep best in the bottle they arrive in, lid screwed tight, somewhere cool and dry away from radiators and cooking steam. The little drying sachet inside the bottle stays there and is never swallowed. If a tablet is missed, take it when you remember; if the next one is nearly due, let the missed one go and carry on as normal. Never take two at once to catch up. Keep the bottle out of reach of children.
Sources
- Pyridostigmine: MedlinePlus Drug Information — MedlinePlus / U.S. National Library of Medicine
- Pyridostigmine drug information — Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Where can I buy Pyridostigmine in Hong Kong?
Pyridostigmine can be ordered online with delivery to Hong Kong. What is listed is generic Mestinon tablets in 60mg. Tracked courier delivery to Hong Kong takes 5 to 9 business days and comes with online tracking.
How much does Pyridostigmine cost?
The price depends on the strength and pack size you choose. The Mestinon page shows current prices in HKD or the currency you select.
Do I need a prescription to order Pyridostigmine?
PockDose does not ask you to upload a prescription when you order pyridostigmine. See the ordering FAQ for details.
What are the other names for pyridostigmine?
Mestinon is a brand name of pyridostigmine. Here, pyridostigmine can be bought online as generic Mestinon. These are generics, not the original brand.
What is the difference between Mestinon and pyridostigmine?
They are the same thing: pyridostigmine is the ingredient and Mestinon is a brand name it is sold under. The Mestinon sold here is a 60mg tablet. The same ingredient is sold under other brand names in other countries, sometimes in different strengths and forms.
How often do you take pyridostigmine?
Ordinary pyridostigmine tablets are taken once, twice or several times a day, and long-acting tablets less often. The pattern follows the form in use and how the weakness behaves over the day, which is why doses are often spaced around meals and around the hours when muscles feel weakest.
Is there a long-acting pyridostigmine tablet?
Yes. Pyridostigmine also comes as extended-release tablets and as an oral liquid, though only the 60mg tablet is sold here. Extended-release tablets have to go down whole, and at least six hours needs to pass between one and the next.
Can you take pyridostigmine with food?
Yes. There is no special diet to follow with pyridostigmine and no food that has to be avoided, so ordinary meals are fine. Many people take their doses at set points in the day, which usually means around breakfast, lunch and the evening meal.