Bilastine 20mg tablets
Requires a prescription from a doctor or prescriber
Bilastine is a novel new-generation antihistamine that is highly selective for the H1 histamine receptor, has a rapid onset and prolonged duration of action.
Official documents, adverse reaction reporting, and safety monitoring
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Official medicine documents
Safety monitoring data
Yellow Card reports
The MHRA Yellow Card scheme collects reports of suspected side effects from healthcare professionals and patients. View the Drug Analysis Profile (iDAP) for real-world adverse reaction data.
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Bilastine
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Submit a Yellow Card report to the MHRA
Data from the MHRA Yellow Card scheme. A reported reaction does not necessarily mean the medicine caused it. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
EudraVigilance
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) collects suspected adverse reaction reports from across the EU/EEA through the EudraVigilance system. Search for safety data on this medicine.
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Bilastine
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EudraVigilance data is published by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). A suspected adverse reaction is not necessarily caused by the medicine.
2 branded products available
MHRA licensed products
View all licensed products for Bilastine on the MHRA register
Ilaxten 20mg tablets
Bilastine 20mg tablets
This is the NHS Drug Tariff indicative price used for reimbursement purposes. It may not reflect the price paid by patients or pharmacies.
View full Drug TariffSource: NHS Drug Tariff via NHSBSA. Derived from dm+d VMPP (Virtual Medicinal Product Pack) pricing data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
WHO defined daily dose (DDD)
20 mg
Not a recommended dose. The DDD is the assumed average maintenance dose per day for a drug used for its main indication in adults. It is a statistical measure used for research and comparison purposes only.
Source: WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology, distributed via NHS dm+d BNF mapping files. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Therapeutically similar medicines
Similarity based on WHO Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification and NHS BNF section grouping. Source data: NHS dm+d via TRUD (OGL v3.0), WHO ATC/DDD Index.
NHS prescribing volume and spending trends
Clinical guidelines and formulary information
British National Formulary
Bilastine
Source: British National Formulary, NICE. Joint Formulary Committee. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Check stock at pharmacies and supply information
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Supply & product information
Official product databases and supply status monitoring
Pharmacy links redirect to the retailer's own search and do not represent real-time stock levels. emc (electronic medicines compendium) is operated by Datapharm Ltd. Shortage information sourced from NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service (SPS), sps.nhs.uk.
Codes for healthcare professionals and prescribing systems
These codes are used by healthcare IT systems and prescribers to identify this medicine.
NHS UK identifiers
Browse tools
SNOMED CT and dm+d codes from NHS TRUD (Technology Reference data Update Distribution), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. BNF codes from NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA). ATC codes from the WHO Collaborating Centre for Drug Statistics Methodology (whocc.no).
Active and completed clinical studies from ClinicalTrials.gov
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH). Data accessed via ClinicalTrials.gov API v2. Trial information is provided for research purposes and does not constitute medical advice.
Pharmacology and chemical data from DrugBank
Key facts
Drug status
Approved
Major interactions
None known
Half-life
14.5h
Mechanism
Bilastine is a selective histamine H1 receptor antagonist (Ki = 64nM) [FDA Label].
Food interactions
2 warnings
Human targets
1 target
Data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Pharmacokinetics at a glance
Absorption
1.13 h
Half-life
14.5h
Protein binding
84-90%
Metabolism
Elimination
66.5%
Clearance
9.20 L/h
Pharmacokinetic data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Known interactions with other medications. Always consult a healthcare professional.
Showing 50 of 420 interactions
[A19750]
How the body processes this drug — absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination
Cmax decreased by 25 % and 33% when taken with a low fat and high fat meal compared to fasted state. Administration with grapefruit juice decreased Cmax by 30%.
Proteins and enzymes this drug interacts with in the body
PMID:33828102 PMID:8280179
Through the H1 receptor, histamine mediates the contraction of smooth muscles and increases capillary permeability due to contraction of terminal venules. Also mediates neurotransmission in the central nervous system and thereby regulates circadian rhythms, emotional and locomotor activities as well as cognitive functions (By similarity)
Proteins that transport this drug across cell membranes
PMID:12960149 PMID:15205344 PMID:15899824 PMID:22306008
Specifically present in limbal stem cells, where it plays a key role in corneal development and repair (By similarity)
PMID:19129463 PMID:7557095
Responsible for intestinal absorption of bile acids (By similarity). Transports dehydroepiandrosterone 3-sulfate (DHEAS), a major circulating steroid secreted by the adrenal cortex, as well as estrone 3-sulfate and 17beta-estradiol 17-O-(beta-D-glucuronate) .
PMID:11159893 PMID:12568656 PMID:19129463 PMID:23918469 PMID:25560245 PMID:9539145
Mediates apical uptake of all-trans-retinol (atROL) across human retinal pigment epithelium, which is essential to maintaining the integrity of the visual cycle and thus vision .
PMID:25560245
Involved in the uptake of clinically used drugs .
PMID:17301733 PMID:20686826 PMID:27777271
Capable of thyroid hormone transport (both T3 or 3,3',5'-triiodo-L-thyronine, and T4 or L-tyroxine) .
PMID:19129463 PMID:20358049
Also transports prostaglandin E2 .
PMID:19129463
Plays roles in blood-brain and -cerebrospinal fluid barrier transport of organic anions and signal mediators, and in hormone uptake by neural cells (By similarity). May also play a role in the reuptake of neuropeptides such as substance P/TAC1 and vasoactive intestinal peptide/VIP released from retinal neurons .
PMID:25132355
May play an important role in plasma and tissue distribution of the structurally diverse chemotherapeutic drugs methotrexate and paclitaxel .
PMID:23243220
Shows a pH-sensitive substrate specificity which may be ascribed to the protonation state of the binding site and leads to a stimulation of substrate transport in an acidic microenvironment .
PMID:19129463
Hydrogencarbonate/HCO3(-) acts as the probable counteranion that exchanges for organic anions .
PMID:19129463
May contribute to regulate the transport of organic compounds in testis across the blood-testis-barrier (Probable)
PMID:10873595 PMID:11159893 PMID:11932330 PMID:12724351 PMID:14610227 PMID:16908597 PMID:18501590 PMID:20507927 PMID:22201122 PMID:23531488 PMID:25132355 PMID:26383540 PMID:27576593 PMID:28408210 PMID:29871943 PMID:34628357
Responsible for the transport of estrone 3-sulfate (E1S) through the basal membrane of syncytiotrophoblast, highlighting a potential role in the placental absorption of fetal-derived sulfated steroids including the steroid hormone precursor dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S) .
PMID:11932330 PMID:12409283
Also facilitates the uptake of sulfated steroids at the basal/sinusoidal membrane of hepatocytes, therefore accounting for the major part of organic anions clearance of liver .
PMID:11159893
Mediates the intestinal uptake of sulfated steroids .
PMID:12724351 PMID:28408210
Mediates the uptake of the neurosteroids DHEA-S and pregnenolone sulfate (PregS) into the endothelial cells of the blood-brain barrier as the first step to enter the brain .
PMID:16908597 PMID:25132355
Also plays a role in the reuptake of neuropeptides such as substance P/TAC1 and vasoactive intestinal peptide/VIP released from retinal neurons .
PMID:25132355
May act as a heme transporter that promotes cellular iron availability via heme oxygenase/HMOX2 and independently of TFRC .
PMID:35714613
Also transports heme by-product coproporphyrin III (CPIII), and may be involved in their hepatic disposition .
PMID:26383540
Mediates the uptake of other substrates such as prostaglandins D2 (PGD2), E1 (PGE1) and E2 (PGE2), taurocholate, L-thyroxine, leukotriene C4 and thromboxane B2 (PubMed:10873595, PubMed:14610227, PubMed:19129463, PubMed:29871943, Ref.25). May contribute to regulate the transport of organic compounds in testis across the blood-testis-barrier (Probable). Shows a pH-sensitive substrate specificity which may be ascribed to the protonation state of the binding site and leads to a stimulation of substrate transport in an acidic microenvironment .
PMID:14610227 PMID:19129463 PMID:22201122
The exact transport mechanism has not been yet deciphered but most likely involves an anion exchange, coupling the cellular uptake of organic substrate with the efflux of an anionic compound .
PMID:19129463 PMID:20507927 PMID:26277985
Hydrogencarbonate/HCO3(-) acts as a probable counteranion that exchanges for organic anions .
PMID:19129463
Cytoplasmic glutamate may also act as counteranion in the placenta .
PMID:26277985
An inwardly directed proton gradient has also been proposed as the driving force of E1S uptake with a (H(+):E1S) stoichiometry of (1:1) PMID:20507927
ATC S01GX13
ATC R06AX29
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
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Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Linked compound data from DrugBank Open Data (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Bilastine
Additional database identifiers
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
22707
ChemSpider
161234
ZINC
ZINC000003822702
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:5182
GenAtlas
HRH1
GeneCards
HRH1
GenBank Gene Database
Z34897
GenBank Protein Database
510296
Guide to Pharmacology
262
UniProt Accession
HRH1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:46
GenAtlas
ABCB5
GeneCards
ABCB5
GenBank Gene Database
AY090613
UniProt Accession
ABCB5_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:10956
GeneCards
SLCO1A2
GenBank Gene Database
U21943
GenBank Protein Database
885978
Guide to Pharmacology
1219
UniProt Accession
SO1A2_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:10962
GenAtlas
SLCO2B1
GeneCards
SLCO2B1
GenBank Gene Database
AB026256
GenBank Protein Database
5006263
Guide to Pharmacology
1224
UniProt Accession
SO2B1_HUMAN
DrugBank citations
If you use DrugBank data in your research, please cite the following publications: