Ephedrine 30mg/10ml solution for injection pre-filled syringes
Requires a prescription from a doctor or prescriber
Ephedrine was first described in western literature in 1888, as a naturally occurring component of the ephedra plant, along with [pseudoephedrine].[A193698] Ephedrine acts as both a direct and indirect sympathomimetic.
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 Ephedrine
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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
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Suspected adverse reactions reported for Ephedrine
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3 branded products available
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Ephedrine 30mg/10ml solution for injection pre-filled syringes
Ephedrine 30mg/10ml solution for injection pre-filled syringes
Martindale Pharmaceuticals Ltd
WHO defined daily dose (DDD)
50 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
Ephedrine
Source: British National Formulary, NICE. Joint Formulary Committee. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
NICE clinical guidance(2)
Parkinson's disease in adults (NG71)
Caesarean birth (NG192)
Source: National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Check stock at pharmacies and supply information
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Search for this medicine at major UK pharmacy chains. These links open the retailer's own website — results depend on their current online catalogue.
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
1 found
Half-life
6 hours
Mechanism
Ephedrine is a direct and indirect sympathomimetic amine.
Food interactions
None known
Human targets
5 targets
Data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
Pharmacokinetics at a glance
Absorption
79.5ng/mL
[A193644]
Half-life
6 hours
[A193644][L12972][L34645]…
Protein binding
0.3%
[A189354]
Volume of distribution
215.6L
[A193644]
Metabolism
[A193641]
Ephedrine can be N-demethylated to norephedrine, or demethylated and deaminized to benzoic acid conjugates and 1,2-hydroxypropylbenzene.
[A193641]…
Elimination
60%
[A193641][L12972]
Approximately 60% is eliminated as the unmetabolized parent compound, 13% as benzoic…
Clearance
23.3L/h
[A193644]
Pharmacokinetic data: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0
[L12993]
Known interactions with other medications. Always consult a healthcare professional.
Showing 50 of 975 interactions
[L12972][L34645]
Manage overdose with blood pressure monitoring, and possibly the administration of parenteral antihypertensives.
[L12972][L34645]
The LD50 in mice after oral administration is 785mg/kg, after intraperitoneal administration if 248mg/kg, and after subcutaneous administration is 425mg/kg.
[L12990]
Ephedrine acts as an agonist of alpha-1, beta-1 and beta-2-adrenergic receptors. The stimulation of alpha-1-adrenergic receptors causes the constriction of veins and a rise in blood pressure, the stimulation of beta-1-adrenergic receptors increases cardiac chronotropy and inotropy, and the stimulation of beta-2-adrenergic receptors causes vasodilation and bronchodilation.[A193650]
How the body processes this drug — absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination
[A193644]
[A193644][L12972][L34645]
[A189354]
[A193644]
[A193641]
Ephedrine can be N-demethylated to norephedrine, or demethylated and deaminized to benzoic acid conjugates and 1,2-hydroxypropylbenzene.
[A193641]
[A193641][L12972]
Approximately 60% is eliminated as the unmetabolized parent compound, 13% as benzoic acid conjugates, and 1% as 1,2-dihydroxypropylbenzene.
[A193641]
[A193644]
Proteins and enzymes this drug interacts with in the body
Involved in the regulation of sleep/wake behaviors PMID:31473062
PMID:21645528
Positively regulates postnatal regression of retinal hyaloid vessels via suppression of VEGFR2/KDR activity, downstream of OPN5 (By similarity)
PMID:2008212 PMID:8125921 PMID:38750358
Is responsible for norepinephrine re-uptake and clearance from the synaptic cleft, thus playing a crucial role in norepinephrine inactivation and homeostasis (By similarity). Can also mediate sodium- and chloride-dependent transport of dopamine PMID:11093780 PMID:8125921 PMID:39395208 PMID:39048818
Enzymes involved in drug metabolism — important for understanding drug interactions
Proteins that transport this drug across cell membranes
PMID:23363473 PMID:37914936 PMID:38081299 PMID:38517752 PMID:8643547
Regulates the transvesicular monoaminergic gradient that determines the quantal size.
Mediates somatodendritic dopamine release in hippocampal neurons, likely as part of a regulated secretory pathway that integrates retrograde synaptic signals (By similarity). Acts as a primary transporter for striatal dopamine loading ensuring impulse-dependent release of dopamine at the synaptic cleft (By similarity). Responsible for histamine and serotonin storage and subsequent corelease from mast cell granules PMID:8860238
Proteins that carry this drug through the body
PMID:19021548
Major calcium and magnesium transporter in plasma, binds approximately 45% of circulating calcium and magnesium in plasma (By similarity).
Potentially has more than two calcium-binding sites and might additionally bind calcium in a non-specific manner (By similarity). The shared binding site between zinc and calcium at residue Asp-273 suggests a crosstalk between zinc and calcium transport in the blood (By similarity). The rank order of affinity is zinc > calcium > magnesium (By similarity).
Binds to the bacterial siderophore enterobactin and inhibits enterobactin-mediated iron uptake of E.coli from ferric transferrin, and may thereby limit the utilization of iron and growth of enteric bacteria such as E.coli .
PMID:6234017
Does not prevent iron uptake by the bacterial siderophore aerobactin PMID:6234017
ATC S01FB02
ATC R01AB05
ATC C01CA26
ATC R03CA02
ATC A08AA56
ATC R01AA03
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Show
Chemical identifiers
CAS, UNII, InChI Key and database cross-references
Linked compound data from DrugBank Open Data (CC BY-NC 4.0)
Ephedrine
Additional database identifiers
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
8937
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
3714
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
3711
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
8946
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
3718
Drugs Product Database (DPD)
8944
ChemSpider
8935
Guide to Pharmacology
556
ZINC
ZINC000000074836
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:277
GenAtlas
ADRA1A
GeneCards
ADRA1A
GenBank Gene Database
D25235
GenBank Protein Database
433201
Guide to Pharmacology
22
UniProt Accession
ADA1A_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:285
GenAtlas
ADRB1
GeneCards
ADRB1
GenBank Gene Database
J03019
GenBank Protein Database
178200
Guide to Pharmacology
28
UniProt Accession
ADRB1_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:286
GenAtlas
ADRB2
GeneCards
ADRB2
GenBank Gene Database
Y00106
GenBank Protein Database
29371
Guide to Pharmacology
29
UniProt Accession
ADRB2_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:3023
GenAtlas
DRD2
GeneCards
DRD2
GenBank Gene Database
M30625
GenBank Protein Database
181432
Guide to Pharmacology
215
UniProt Accession
DRD2_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:11048
GenAtlas
SLC6A2
GeneCards
SLC6A2
GenBank Gene Database
M65105
GenBank Protein Database
189258
Guide to Pharmacology
926
UniProt Accession
SC6A2_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:983
GenAtlas
BCHE
GeneCards
BCHE
GenBank Gene Database
M32391
GenBank Protein Database
1311630
Guide to Pharmacology
2471
UniProt Accession
CHLE_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:108
GenAtlas
ACHE
GeneCards
ACHE
GenBank Gene Database
M55040
GenBank Protein Database
177975
Guide to Pharmacology
2465
UniProt Accession
ACES_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:399
GenAtlas
ALB
GeneCards
ALB
GenBank Gene Database
V00494
GenBank Protein Database
28590
UniProt Accession
ALBU_HUMAN
HUGO Gene Nomenclature Committee (HGNC)
HGNC:10935
GenAtlas
SLC18A2
GeneCards
SLC18A2
GenBank Gene Database
L09118
GenBank Protein Database
292335
Guide to Pharmacology
1012
UniProt Accession
VMAT2_HUMAN
International reference pricing
Reference pricing from DrugBank. Prices are indicative and may not reflect current UK costs.
Source: DrugBank. Used under CC BY-NC 4.0 academic licence for non-commercial purposes.
Patent information
7 active patents
Source: DrugBank · CC BY-NC 4.0. Patent data sourced from national patent offices. Expiry dates may not reflect extensions, regulatory exclusivity periods, or legal challenges.
DrugBank citations
If you use DrugBank data in your research, please cite the following publications: