Capsaicin (topical, high-strength)

Category: topical

Aliases: Qutenza patch, Zostrix

Pharmacological Mechanism

Topical TRPV1 agonist — chronic exposure desensitizes nociceptors → analgesia. OTC at low strength for muscle/joint aches; Rx 8% patch (Qutenza) for post-herpetic neuralgia delivers extended relief from a single 60-min office application.

Half-Life (t½)

TD: 24h

Dosing Guidelines

• TD: Typical 0.075 mg (Range: 0.025–8 mg)

Target Organ Systems

• nervous
• musculoskeletal
• integumentary

Chemical Identifiers

• PubChem CID: 1548943
• Formula: C18H27NO3
• Molecular weight: 305.41 g/mol
• InChIKey: YKPUWZUDDOIDPM-SOFGYWHQSA-N
• SMILES: CC(C)/C=C/CCCCC(=O)NCC1=CC(=C(C=C1)O)OC