Types of medicine
What Are Nitrates? Why ED Medicine Labels Warn About Them
Nitrates · say it: NY-traytsAlso written: nitrate medicines, nitroglycerin, glyceryl trinitrate, GTN, isosorbide
Short answer
Nitrates are medicines that widen blood vessels to ease or prevent chest pain (angina). They include nitroglycerin and isosorbide.
What it means
Nitrates relax and widen blood vessels, which reduces the heart's workload and improves blood flow, easing angina (chest pain from narrowed heart arteries). They come as sprays or tablets under the tongue for quick relief (such as nitroglycerin, also called GTN), and as tablets or patches for prevention (such as isosorbide mononitrate). Chest pain that does not settle as your doctor has advised needs emergency help.
Nitrates appear most often in warnings on erectile dysfunction medicines (sildenafil, tadalafil, vardenafil) and riociguat. These must never be combined with nitrates because together they can cause a sudden, dangerous drop in blood pressure. Recreational 'poppers' (amyl nitrite) carry the same risk. Nitrate labels also mention headache, dizziness and flushing, and the need for a nitrate-free period each day with some long-acting forms.
Medicine nitrates are different from the nitrates in food and water, which are not what these warnings are about.
Where you may see it
- 'Contraindications' sections of sildenafil, tadalafil and vardenafil labels
- Angina medicine labels and leaflets
- Cardiology letters and emergency notes
📄 How it looks on a report
Contraindicated with nitrates: concomitant use can cause severe hypotension.
🙅 What it does not mean
- The warning does not refer to nitrates in vegetables or processed meat.
- A headache on nitrates is common and does not usually mean something is wrong, but tell your doctor if it is severe.
- Stopping long-term nitrates suddenly is not advised without speaking to your doctor.
🗒️ Questions to ask your doctor
💊 Medicines whose labels mention “Nitrates”
Plain-English explanations of each medicine, from its official FDA label.
- Amlodipine
a calcium channel blocker, a type of medicine that relaxes blood vessels
- Sildenafil
A phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) inhibitor, a medicine used to treat erectile dysfunction
- Tadalafil
a phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5) inhibitor, which is a medicine that blocks an enzyme called PDE5
🔗 Read more from trusted sources
- “Nitrates” on MedlinePlus ↗
US National Library of Medicine
- NCI Dictionary definition ↗
US National Cancer Institute: “nitroglycerin”
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