Halcion vs. Xanax: What Are the Differences and Similarities?
Halcion and Xanax are well-known prescription drugs that pose a high risk of addiction. While both drugs are used for short-term treatments of some medical conditions and have a similar mechanism of action, they still have several differences.
Continue reading this Halcion vs. Xanax article to learn more about their side effects, precautions, and more!
What Is Halcion Drug?
Halcion, also known as triazolam, is a medication belonging to benzodiazepines. The latter is an anti-depressant drug class commonly used as sedatives to treat various medical conditions.
In the case of Halcion, doctors prescribe this medication to treat insomnia, a sleeping disorder. Triazolam acts on the nervous system and produces a calming effect. The former state might help patients fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer during the night without waking up.
As a result, those diagnosed with insomnia can get quality sleep.
Halcion comes as tablets. They’re usually taken before bedtime, but not with a meal or shortly after eating. That’s because food digestion can impair the effects of triazolam. Additionally, the drug might interact with food and cause unavoidable side effects.
That said, doctors prescribe the benzodiazepine drug for short-term use, about 7 to 10 days, as long-term use can cause life-threatening complications and risk addiction.
What Is Xanax Drug?
Xanax, also known as alprazolam, is also a benzodiazepine drug. Doctors prescribe the former substance to ease panic disorder symptoms, such as unexpected attacks of fear and anxiety.
Alprazolam can also be used to treat other disorders. Those include depression, agoraphobia (fear of open spaces), and premenstrual syndrome.
Xanax comes as immediate-release or extended-release pills. The drug is also available in the form of dissolving tablets or solutions. Each of the former forms has different prescriptions. Usually, doctors divide disintegrating tablets and concentrated liquid dosages throughout the day.
As for the immediate- and extended-release pills, they’re taken once daily, usually in the morning.
Similar to Halcion, Xanax acts on the nervous system and risks addiction as well as other serious side effects. For that reason, doctors usually give the lowest effective dosage of alprazolam and prescribe it for short-term usage.
Halcion vs. Xanax: What Are the Similarities?
From the above, you can see that Halcion and Xanax belong to the same class of antidepressant drugs, benzodiazepines. On that note, both substances have a similar mechanism of action, side effects, and precautions.
Let’s discuss each similarity in further detail!
Mechanism of Action
Generally, benzodiazepines produce a calming effect. They do so by enhancing the function of GABA, a neurotransmitter with inhibitory action on the nervous system. GABA reduces the excitability of neurons by binding to three cell receptors: GABA-A, GABA-B, and GABA-C.
Once the neurotransmitter binds to the receptors, it changes the ionic concentration of chloride in the cells.
Naturally, the negatively charged ion concentration is much higher outside the cell than inside. However, GABA reverses the former process. It increases the influx of chloride ions inside the cells, causing hyperpolarization.
Hyperpolarized cells have more negative membrane potential. That causes the cells to be less responsive and lowers their ability to send chemical messages. Consequently, your body enters a state of relaxation.
Now, you might wonder: what do benzodiazepines have to do with GABA?
The antidepressant drug changes the conformation of receptor A only. As a result, it increases the binding ability between GABA and the former receptor, enhancing the neurotransmitter’s inhibitory effects.
Side Effects
Both Halcion and Xanax pose similar side effects. Those include:
- Drowsiness and dizziness
- Headaches
- Coordination problems
- Nervousness
- Nausea, vomiting, and change in appetite
- Dry mouth and increased salivation
- Numbness
Some of the side effects are more serious than others and require immediate medical treatment. Such symptoms include:
- Rashes and itchiness
- Eyes, face, lips, tongue, or throat swelling
- Breathing difficulties
- Memory loss and confusion
- Change in speech pattern
Withdrawal Symptoms
As you can see, Halcion and Xanax alter the nervous system’s function. The problem with such drugs is that they can cause physiological dependency and develop tolerance in the body.
So, your body’s nervous system stops functioning normally and depends on drugs to relax or sleep. Unfortunately, benzodiazepine dependency can occur after using the medication for several days or weeks—even as prescribed!
Consequently, quitting the medications cold turkey can lead to withdrawal symptoms, including:
- Sleep disturbance
- Irritability, increased tension, and anxiety
- Panic attacks
- Hand tremor
- Sweating
- Difficulty in concentration
- Nausea and dry retching and nausea, some weight loss
- Palpitations
- Muscular pain and stiffness
- Perceptual changes
- Seizures
- Psychosis
Precautions
Both triazolam and alprazolam have similar precautions, including avoiding alcohol and other central nervous system depressants, as the former substances can make the side effects even more severe.
Additionally, Xanax and Halcion pose health risks when combined with grapefruit juice. The latter doesn’t interact with the drugs.
However, it binds to an enzyme, cytochrome P450, making it less available in the body. This enzyme plays a significant role in metabolizing drugs in the liver and eliminating them.
With lower enzyme concentrations available, drugs build up in the blood, reaching abnormal levels, which can be dangerous.
Likewise, antifungal drugs belonging to the azole group bind to the cytochrome enzyme, risking high levels of benzodiazepines in the blood.
Halcion vs. Xanax: What Are the Differences?
Although triazolam and alprazolam have several similarities, they still possess many differences. Those include:
Indication
As mentioned earlier, Halcion treats sleeping disorders, while Xanax is indicated to treat panic disorders.
Aside from those effects, both drugs can be used as sedatives for pre-anesthesia in surgeries. However, lower dosages of triazolam reduce preoperative anxiety better than alprazolam.
Dosage
Both drugs are high-potency benzodiazepines. However, triazolam is slightly more powerful than alprazolam. For that reason, the starting dosage of Halcion is 0.125 mg, and the maximum dosage is 0.5 mg.
As for Xanax, 0.25 mg is the starting dosage, and the maximum dosage is 4 mg, which is more than triazolam.
Onset of Action and Duration
Onset of action refers to the duration a drug takes to be effective after administration. Halcion has a faster onset of action, reaching peak levels in the blood after 2 hours of ingestion.
Xanax’s onset action is similar to triazolam, reaching peak plasma levels in 1 to 2.1 hours. However, the latter concentrations occur at higher dosages of 0.5 to 3 mg compared with the lower doses of Halcion.
As for the duration of action, Xanax stays longer in the body. Halcion’s effects last 6-7 hours, while alprazolam wears off after 12 hours or more.
Addiction Risks
As you can see, Halcion has a higher onset of action and a shorter life within the body. That’s why it’s recommended for short-term use only. Extended periods can cause the body to crave the drug more and result in addiction.
Xanax, on the other hand, also risks addiction. However, it’s less potent than triazolam, which is why patients can take the medication for longer periods than Halcion.
Conclusion
When comparing Halcion vs. Xanax, you can see both drugs have various similarities and differences. Aside from belonging to the same drug family, they have similar modes of action, side effects, and precautions. Plus, they cause withdrawal symptoms.
However, Halcion is used to treat insomnia, while Xanax is indicated for panic disorders. Both drugs.
That said, benzodiazepine drugs risk addiction and can produce life-threatening complications, even with short-term usage. For that reason, patients must seek medical attention immediately when experiencing any side effects to ensure their safety.
