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phenylephrine

phenylephrine

1 8.3
A drug that narrows blood vessels to reduce nose swelling, make pupils larger, and raise blood pressure
  • noun
  • /ˌfɛnəˈlɛfɹɪn/
  • Specialized
translation icon : fenilefrina
  • The doctor recommended using phenylephrine to relieve my nasal congestion during allergy season.

Examples

  • Phenylephrine is often found in over-the-counter medications for treating stuffy noses.

  • After taking a decongestant with phenylephrine, I noticed my breathing improved significantly.

  • Now DayQuil contains phenylephrine, which doesn't do diddly-squat for the symptoms it's supposed to treat.

    Blog text (10)
  • Phenylephrine Neo-Synephrine Nasal

    Academic text (2007)
  • With the spray technique, the nose is topicalized in the standard fashion for nasolaryngoscopy with lidocaine and phenylephrine sprays.

    Academic text (2004)
  • The patient is then administered decongestion therapy with 0.25% phenylephrine HCl, and all examinations and manipulations are repeated and scored.

    Academic text (2002)
  • Because the tissue is vascular and bleeds easily, we may need to cauterize the tissue again with silver nitrate or control bleeding with phenylephrine applied to a small cotton ball.

    Academic text (2003)
  • After the removal of the packing system, cleaning is periodically accomplished in the office with phenylephrine (Neo-Synephrine) irrigation and instrument hygiene facilitated by endoscopy.

    Academic text (1994)

Surface Forms

phenylephrine singular

Morphology

phenylephrine = epinephrine (opaque) = phenyl + epinephrine

Although morphologically formed by adding the chemical combining form 'phenyl' to 'epinephrine', the name is a specialized chemical/medical term and its pharmacological meaning is not inferable by average learners.

Etymology

Phenylephrine comes from two parts: phenyl, a name for a simple chemical 'ring' often found in medicines, and ephrine, which links it to epinephrine ('adrenaline'). So it's a man-made drug that works like adrenaline to make blood vessels smaller, which explains why doctors use it to raise blood pressure, make pupils larger, or clear a blocked nose.