What is Angina?

Angina is a very broad term that refers to chest pain. Angina itself is not a disease or a health condition, but rather, it’s a symptom of the actual underlying health condition.

Oftentimes, angina is caused by a specific part of the diagnosed disease, which is that oxygen flow is restricted in the blood being carried to the heart. This decreased oxygen level causes the heart to pump harder in order to get the oxygen it needs. The extra stress on the muscle from this action typically results in angina.

Angina can manifest in various ways, but people have been known to describe it as a squeezing or tightness in the chest. Some say angina feels as though they’re being suffocated.

Angina pain isn’t necessarily constant — it can come and go in waves as your body struggles to pump blood to the heart. Theoretically, it should decrease with rest. This is most common when people are under severe emotional distress or when they’re exercising. This is typically called stable angina.

However, it’s possible to experience angina when you’re already at rest, which may indicate that your angina has developed into unstable angina. If your usual methods of pain reduction don’t work and your symptoms are not being mitigated, seek medical attention immediately.

There can be many reasons behind angina, but the most common are coronary artery disease, spasms in the coronary artery walls, unmanaged or severe hypertension (high blood pressure) or aortic stenosis, which is the narrowing of one or more heart valves.

Ranexa

Ranexa (ranolazine ER) is sometimes prescribed for people who experience chronic angina. It’s not typically the first angina medication that physicians prescribe, but that doesn’t mean it’s less effective. In fact, Ranexa is quite effective at reducing sodium and calcium levels in the blood traveling to the heart — but without changing the patient’s heart rate or blood pressure.

Researchers aren’t exactly sure how Ranexa accomplishes this fortunate effect, but they do know that it’s helpful. Lower sodium and calcium levels can improve blood flow, which helps alleviate the burden on the heart muscle itself, allowing it to relax.

The best part about the way Ranexa works is that it doesn’t interfere with other angina medications, which means it can be taken in conjunction with other popular drugs. Other popular medicine combinations with Ranexa include heart and hypertension drugs.

In the U.S., you can expect to pay a cash price starting at $265.00 for a 30-day supply of brand name Ranexa (about $8.83 per pill). Even the generic ranolazine ER is rather expensive, starting off at $32.00 for just a 14-day supply ($2.28 per pill), although the price per pill typically goes down in larger supplies.

At NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can buy Ranexa for $310.00 ($5.17 per pill). Our generic version starts off in 100-day quantities for about $96.00 ($0.96 per pill). In both cases, the higher doses are a bit more expensive.

Vastarel MR

Vastarel MR (trimetazidine MR) is an angina medication prescribed sometimes to prevent ischemia, which is inadequate blood supply to the heart. The pain associated with ischemia can be quite severe, and of course the condition itself will cause physical stress on the body.

Like other angina medications, Vastarel MR helps lift some of the burden on the heart so that the muscle can conserve its energy. In some cases, these medications are used to manage symptoms while underlying conditions are being treated.

Vastarel MR is nearly impossible to find in the United States at this point, which is perhaps why it’s so popular for international and online Canadian pharmacies. Fortunately, we have access to both the brand name and the generic version at NorthWestPharmacy.com.

You can purchase a few different quantities on our website. A 60-day supply of brand name Vastarel MR starts at about $85.00 ($1.42 per pill). You can also purchase a 120-day supply for about $153.00 ($1.28 per pill), or a 180-day supply for about $208.00 ($1.16 per pill).

A 60-day supply of the generic trimetazidine MR starts off at about $47.00 ($0.78 per pill). However, you can also purchase a 30-day supply for about $25.00 ($0.84 per pill), or a 90-day supply for about $70.00 ($0.78 per pill).

Nitrolingual Pump Spray

Nitrolingual pump spray (nitroglycerine) is different from the other medications on this list in that it’s a fast-acting formula that is used when someone is feeling chest pain. Nitroglycerine is a vasodilator that relaxes the coronary arteries so that blood can more easily flow through them.

Nitroglycerine medications are also known as nitrates. While this version is a fast-acting version, there are long-lasting versions of nitrates (i.e. Imdur) that are taken on a daily basis.

Daily maintenance medications like this are typically prescribed for people who have previously experienced cardiac episodes or arrest. However, fast-acting nitrates are often prescribed for emergency situations — patients typically keep them in their purse or desk drawers just in case they begin experiencing chest pains that their maintenance angina medication isn’t helping.

This theory is similar to how asthmatics may be on daily or twice-daily long-term inhaled corticosteroids. In addition, they may still (and probably should still) carry a fast-acting inhaler just in case they have an asthma attack.

While asthma medications such as Advair, Breo, or Symbicort are extremely effective at managing asthma over long periods of time, they are entirely ineffective at emergency situations. In fact, those medications are designed exactly to reduce the number of emergency situations patients may have to face, as they can be deadly.

What separates fast-acting nitrates from oral daily medications is the method in which the patient takes the medication. Nitrolingual pump spray (or the generic equivalent) is administered directly into the mouth, under the tongue.

This method allows the body to absorb the medication as quickly as possible, thanks to the sublingual glands situated under the tongue. The ample supply of blood vessels in this area are perfect for this purpose.

Other nitrates are administered in the cheek, where there are also large blood vessels that can quickly carry the medication to the coronary arteries.

In the U.S., the generic nitroglycerine lingual starts at about $240.00 per pump spray. The brand name is difficult to find, considering the prevalence of the generic version.

At NorthWestPharmacy.com, you can purchase brand name Nitrolingual for about $43.00, and the generic starts off at about $32.00.

Expiration Dates

One of the most common frustrations with fast-acting medications — the kind that people keep around “just in case” — is that they expire after a period of time. Typically, this time frame is about one year, at which point, the medication should be discarded.

People who have to keep EpiPens on their person at all times also complain about this issue. While they are certainly avoiding their allergies as much as possible, it’s smart to carry around an EpiPen just in case they come into contact with the allergen accidentally.

But if they don’t encounter the allergen (thankfully), all that money they spent on the EpiPen is essentially thrown in the trash. In some cases, people don’t even have the option of skipping this type of medication and hoping that they don’t need it.

Daycare facilities require an EpiPen for any child who has an anaphylaxis reaction to an allergen — typically food or insect stings. Of course, the EpiPen must be replaced every year.

While children are hopefully not experiencing angina, the cost-prohibitive nature of expiring medication and the need to keep it fresh remains a problem. If you exercise regularly and use your Nitrolingual pump spray before each workout to prevent angina, you may use your entire bottle without a problem.

But if you’re less active or are simply lucky and aren’t experiencing angina very often, you may be spending a lot of money on medication that expires before you realize how much time has passed.

Expiration dates make more affordable medication even more important. People are more likely to replace their medication if they don’t need to be so worried about how much it costs. If they can’t afford their angina medication, or they need to use that money to pay for something else (like a car repair), then they may just skip that refill.

Medication nonadherence cost in the United States is catastrophic. According to one review, the cost of medication nonadherence is somewhere between $100 billion and $289 billion annually. And theoretically, this issue is entirely preventable — if people can afford their medication, that is.

Fortunately, there are ways to save money on your medications (angina or otherwise), and we’re happy to help you keep more of your hard-earned money in your pocket.

Saving Money on Angina Medication

As previously mentioned, angina medication is one of our more popular categories of prescription drugs. Some people have access to top tier medical insurance that pays for their medications at a higher rate, but many do not. For them, finding more affordable angina medication is a matter of life and death.

At NorthWestPharmacy.com, we value safety above all else, which is why we follow strict guidelines written by two professional pharmacy associations: the Canadian International Pharmacy Association (CIPA) and the International Pharmacy Association of British Columbia (IPABC).

Our customers are highly satisfied with our prices and our customer service. You can read their own words in our 400,000+ international and Canadian online pharmacy reviews submitted through leading third-party review websites, and our 4.8/5 overall star rating.

If this is your first time purchasing medication from an international online pharmacy, it’s normal to be a bit nervous. This is one of the reasons we’re so adamant about having a dedicated call center. People often feel more comfortable when they can speak to a real human, as opposed to exchanging messaging with a chatbot or dealing with automated phone services.

Our call center is staffed by knowledgeable representatives who want to help you with whatever you need. They can help you find your medication, answer your questions, and even help you place an order. They can also put you in touch with one of our friendly pharmacists for counseling about your medication.

When you’re ready, please give us a call at 1-866-539-5330. Of course, you can always email us if you prefer. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible. We look forward to hearing from you soon!