What are Vasporin, Ciprofloxacin and Voltaron used for?

Q: The doctor has advised me to take Vasporin, Ciprofloxacin and Voltaron. What are the uses of the above drugs? I get pain in the knees due to which I can't sleep. What am I suffering from?

A:Vasoprin is a Fixed-Dose Combination of two medicines: isosorbide mononitrate and aspirin. It is irrational combination not permitted in any advanced country. Isosorbide mononitrate is used in heart patients for angina. Aspirin is used to make the blood thinner. However 75 mg to 80 mg of aspirin is normally used while Vasoprin contains 150 mg which can produce more side effects without any benefit to the patient.Voltaron contains diclofenac sodium, a potent pain killer.Ciprofloxacin is an antibacterial given to control infection. It is a chemical name, not a brand name.You have not given the name of others. Your doctor should tell you the diagnosis for which a heart medicine, an antibiotic and a potent pain-killer are being given. Since all the medicines are for different indications, I cannot tell you why they are being given.Your attention is invited to the following comments:General statement on selection of brands: There are scores, sometimes hundreds, of brands of the same medicine. Against about 300 pharmaceutical manufacturers in western countries like Britain, there are over 20,000 producers in India that market more than 40,000 brands. Most manufacturers do not have quality testing laboratories. Hence selection of brands is important. Many companies give incentives to prescribers to patronise their products. Patients should check the reputation of manufacturers before consuming medicines.Fixed-Dose Combinations (FDCs): Medicines are discovered individually and are supposed to be taken separately. A huge number of irrational, illegal combinations of drugs are being sold in India; quite a few without mandatory approval of the Drugs Controller General, India (DCGI). Except in a few cases (such as TB medicines), it is always better to take medicines separately so that dosage can be adjusted and side effects monitored.