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Hydroxyzine

Atarax is the only hydroxyzine product on this shelf, available in 10 mg and 25 mg tablets. It is a sedating antihistamine used for generalised anxiety and itching.

Atarax

Generalised Anxiety Disorder, Pruritus

10mg · 25mg

Hydroxyzine tablets for generalised anxiety and itching. It is a sedating antihistamine, which is why it is sometimes used for short-term anxiety relief.

From$0.66/ tabletView

Key points

  • Drowsiness is common enough that the label warns against driving or operating machinery while taking Atarax.
  • Older patients should start at the lower end of the dose range, because reduced liver, kidney or heart function makes the sedating effect more pronounced.
  • A previous reaction to hydroxyzine means Atarax is not suitable.

How does Hydroxyzine work?

Hydroxyzine blocks histamine at the H1 receptor, the same signal that triggers itching and swelling in an allergic response. Because it also crosses into the brain and dampens activity there, it produces sedation and a calming effect that makes it useful for Generalised Anxiety Disorder as well as for pruritus.

That sedation is the reason the driving warning exists. It is also why dose caution matters more in older patients, whose bodies clear the drug more slowly and who are more sensitive to its effect on alertness.

Further reading