Ranexa
Ranexa tablets are ranolazine 500mg and 1000mg, extended-release, taken twice daily to cut how often chronic angina (recurring chest pain) flares up.
All strengths and pack prices
| Strength | Pack | Price | Per tablet |
|---|---|---|---|
| 500mg | 30 tablets | $89.40 | $2.98 |
| 500mg | 60 tablets | $127.80 | $2.13 |
| 500mg | 90 tablets | $168.30 | $1.87 |
| 500mg | 120 tablets | $204.00 | $1.70 |
| 500mg | 180 tablets | $271.80 | $1.51 |
| 1000mg | 30 tablets | $102.00 | $3.40 |
| 1000mg | 60 tablets | $189.00 | $3.15 |
| 1000mg | 90 tablets | $229.50 | $2.55 |
| 1000mg | 120 tablets | $285.60 | $2.38 |
| 1000mg | 180 tablets | $383.40 | $2.13 |
- Category
- Heart & Blood Pressure
- Active ingredient
- Ranolazine
- Route
- Oral
- Form
- Tablet
- Strengths
- 500/1000mg
You will receive a quality generic equivalent, depending on stock.
Shipped in a discreet, unmarked envelope.
Details
- Conditions
- Chronic angina
- Therapeutic Class
- Antianginal
- Pharmacological Class
- Late Sodium Current Inhibitor
- Minor Side Effects
- Dizziness, Constipation
- Moderate Side Effects
- Nausea, Headache
- Dosage Forms
- Tablet
- Administration Route
- Oral
- Originator
- Gilead
- Onset Time
- 1–3 hours
- Duration
- 12 hours
- Storage Instructions
- Store in a dry location.
- Drug Interactions
- Ketoconazole, Clarithromycin, Simvastatin
What you will receive
Ranexa is the originator brand name, made by Gilead. We use it to identify the medicine; the pack you receive is a generic equivalent, not the original Ranexa.
- The same active ingredient (Ranolazine) at the same strength.
- The exact brand supplied depends on what is in stock when your order ships.
FAQ
What Ranexa strengths and pack quantities are there?
You can order generic ranolazine 500mg and 1000mg tablets, each in packs of 30 to 180. This is generic ranolazine, not the original Ranexa. Larger packs cost less per tablet.
How is Ranexa delivered to Hong Kong?
Generic ranolazine ships in plain, unbranded packaging with nothing outside about the contents. Tracked courier takes 5 to 9 business days with online tracking, while standard airmail takes 14 to 21 business days, untracked. Very large orders over 120 units may be split into several parcels.
Can Ranexa be taken with other heart medicines?
Yes. Ranolazine is often used alongside other angina medicines such as nitrates, beta-blockers or calcium channel blockers, when one medicine alone is not holding the angina back. It acts on heart muscle cells rather than on heart rate or vessel width, so it can sit alongside them.
Does ranolazine affect blood pressure or pulse?
Hardly at all — ranolazine leaves both readings largely unchanged, which is one reason it can be added when nitrates, beta-blockers or calcium channel blockers are already in place. The others alter heart rate or blood pressure; this one does not.
Can I drink grapefruit juice with Ranexa?
Grapefruit and its juice block the liver enzymes that clear ranolazine, so more of the medicine stays in the blood and side effects such as dizziness become more likely. The fruit, its juice and drinks blended with it all count, so keep them off the menu while you are taking Ranexa.
Can Ranexa tablets be split or crushed?
They should not be. The tablet is designed to release ranolazine slowly through the day, and cutting, crushing or chewing lets the whole dose out in one go. Swallow each one whole with a glass of water, and step between the 500mg and 1000mg strengths rather than halving a larger tablet.
About Ranexa
How ranolazine eases angina
Chronic angina is the pressure or tightness in the chest that returns when the heart muscle is short of oxygen-rich blood, and Ranexa (ranolazine) is a daily tablet for it, used on its own or added to other heart medicines. Its aim is fewer episodes. The narrowed arteries behind them stay as they are. Where nitrates and beta-blockers slow the heart or relax the vessels, ranolazine works inside the heart muscle cells, altering how they handle sodium and calcium so the muscle needs less energy. Pulse and blood pressure barely change.
Side effects worth knowing about
Headache, nausea, constipation and dizziness are the ones people mention most, and they usually soften as the body adapts. Take care with driving and machinery until you know how the tablets affect you. A heartbeat that turns rapid, pounding or uneven, breathing that becomes difficult, or a faint are all reasons to get help straight away.
What interacts with ranolazine
Liver enzymes clear ranolazine from the body, and several medicines and foods change how fast that happens. Ketoconazole, itraconazole and clarithromycin slow it down, so too much ranolazine can build up; St John's wort, a herbal remedy, speeds it up until too little is left to work. Skip grapefruit and its juice while you are taking these tablets. Ranolazine is not given to people with severe liver disease, or with long QT syndrome, an unusual heart rhythm that can cause blackouts.
Choosing between 500mg and 1000mg, and living with the schedule
Someone whose angina still breaks through on 500mg twice a day usually moves up to 1000mg twice a day, where a single tablet replaces two of the lower strength. Reordering the same strength you already use avoids confusion at the pill box. These are extended-release tablets, so they go down whole; crushing or chewing releases the dose all at once. Angina can return between doses on a day you skipped one, and Ranexa is no rescue treatment for an attack that has started. Meals make little difference to it, so tie the two doses to breakfast and supper if that suits you.
Sources
- Ranolazine: MedlinePlus Drug Information — MedlinePlus / U.S. National Library of Medicine
- Angina (Chest Pain) - What Is Angina? | NHLBI, NIH — NHLBI / NIH