Evidence supporting the use of: Potassium Nitrate
For the health condition: Chest Pain

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Synopsis

Source of validity: Scientific
Rating (out of 5): 4

Potassium nitrate has a scientific basis for its use in the treatment of chest pain (angina pectoris), though its role has largely been supplanted by more effective and safer nitrates, such as nitroglycerin. The therapeutic effect comes from its nitrate component. Once ingested, nitrates are converted in the body to nitric oxide, a potent vasodilator. Nitric oxide relaxes the smooth muscle in blood vessel walls, leading to vasodilation and improved blood flow to the heart muscle, thereby alleviating chest pain caused by reduced oxygen delivery (ischemia).

Historically, potassium nitrate was used in the 19th and early 20th centuries as a remedy for angina pectoris. However, it was eventually replaced by more rapidly acting and controllable nitrates (e.g., nitroglycerin, isosorbide dinitrate). Clinical studies and pharmacological understanding confirm the theoretical basis for its use; however, potassium nitrate’s onset of action is slower and its side effect profile (including the risk of methemoglobinemia and gastric irritation) makes it less suitable than modern agents.

In modern medicine, potassium nitrate is rarely, if ever, used for chest pain, but its nitrate-mediated vasodilatory effect is well understood and scientifically validated. Its historical use was justified by the same mechanism that underlies current nitrate therapies. Thus, the evidence for the nitrate group in angina is strong, but for potassium nitrate specifically, it is mostly of historical interest.

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Other health conditions supported by Potassium Nitrate

Chest Pain

Products containing Potassium Nitrate

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