Bismuth salt (anti-diarrhoeal / antacid)
Bismuth subsalicylate
Brand names: Pepto-Bismol
Adult dose
Dose: 525mg PO q30–60min PRN (max 4.2g/day); travellers' diarrhoea prophylaxis 525mg QDS
Route: Oral
Frequency: PRN
Clinical pearls
- NaTHNaC TravelHealthPro: travellers' diarrhoea symptomatic relief / prophylaxis
- NICE CKS Diarrhoea
- Available OTC
Contraindications
- Aspirin / salicylate hypersensitivity
- Active GI bleeding
- Children with viral illness (Reye's syndrome)
- Severe renal impairment
- Pregnancy
Side effects
- Black stools / tongue
- Salicylate toxicity (high doses)
- Constipation
- Reye's syndrome (children)
Interactions
- Anticoagulants
- Tetracyclines / quinolones (chelation)
- Aspirin/NSAIDs (additive salicylate)
Monitoring
- Symptom resolution
- Salicylate effect (high dose)
Reference: BNF; NaTHNaC; NICE CKS; https://bnf.nice.org.uk/drugs/bismuth-subsalicylate/. Verify against your local formulary and the latest BNF before prescribing.
Related
Curated clinical cross-links plus same-class fallbacks.
Calculators
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- Rome IV Diagnostic Criteria for Globus · Functional GI Disorders
- Ho Index for Predicting Response to Medical Therapy in IBD · Inflammatory Bowel Disease
- Rh(D) Immune Globulin Dosage for Maternal-Fetal Haemorrhage · Haematology in Pregnancy
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- Diabetic Macular Oedema (DMO) Classification · Diabetic Retinopathy