What are antispasmodic drugs?
Antispasmodic medications are in the class of drugs called anticholinergics. These are also referred to as MRA (Muscarinic Receptor Antagonists). There is not a specific drug always used, there are many choices.According to a recent publication, Clinical Anesthesia,by Barash, Cullen, Stoelting, Cahalan and Stock, current anesthesia practices do not routinely use atropine for this, as was common in the past:"The advent of newer inhalation agents has almost completely dispelled the routine use of anticholinergic drugs for preoperative medication...Specific indications for an anticholinergic before surgery are (1) antisialagogue effect [drying of the upper airway secretions] and (2) sedation and amnesia...Uses that are less firmly established and not universally agreed on include the preoperative prescription of anticholinergics for their vagolytic action or in an attempt to decrease gastric acid secretion... Scopolamine is a more potent drying agent than atropine...Glycopyrrolate is a more potent and longer acting antisialagogue than atropine...When sedation and amnesia are desired...scopolamine is frequently the anticholenergic chosen, especially in combination with morphine."