Hormonal & Sexual Health / Cardiovascular
Vasopressin
Vasopressin is nine amino acids that decide how much water the body keeps: released when fluid runs short, it tells the kidney to reclaim water from the urine, which is why being dehydrated means passing less. Through a second receptor it also tightens blood vessels, and that is the job it does in hospitals — infused in intensive care to hold up blood pressure in vasodilatory shock, compared head to head against adrenaline in cardiac arrest, and against noradrenaline in vasoplegia after cardiac surgery. It is given as well for diabetes insipidus, the condition in which the water-conserving signal itself fails. Every use recorded on file is a supervised hospital one.
Last updated
Mechanism
V1 receptors on vascular smooth muscle raise intracellular calcium and vascular resistance; V2 receptors in the kidney drive antidiuresis.
Regulatory status
Approved by the FDA. Marketed as VASOSTRICT, VASOPRESSIN, VASOPRESSIN IN SODIUM CHLORIDE 0.9%, VASOPRESSIN IN DEXTROSE 5%. Earliest approval 2014-04-17. Application NDA204485, NDA212593, NDA217569, NDA217766, ANDA211857, ANDA212944, ANDA213206, ANDA213988, ANDA214314, ANDA216963.
An approval grades as rung 1 on this site, because 21 CFR 314.126 requires adequate and well-controlled human investigations and one cannot be granted without them. It covers specific indications and doses, though, and does not transfer to other uses of the same molecule.
Reported effects
What sources associate with this compound. Reported categories, not outcomes we have graded — each would need its own citation and rung.
- Blood pressure support research
- Water balance research
- Social behaviour research
Dosing on file unverified
Diabetes Insipidus: 2.5-10 U IM/SC/IN q8-12h; IV infusion: 0.005 U/kg/h initially; Research: 20 IU IN, 1.5 IU IV
Carried from a source that labels it unverified, and reproduced with that label attached. A record of what is reported, not a recommendation. No citation on this page establishes it.
Literature on file 12
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review or editorial
Vasopressin and Vasopressin Receptor Antagonists (2008, cited 11x) graded on: indexed as "review-article" - secondary literature, not a study — “review-article”
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animal in vivo
Untangling Mephedrone-Induced Social Reward in Rats-The Involvement of Oxytocin and Vasopressin V1A Receptors. graded on: an animal model — “Rats”
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human RCT
Vasopressin for hemodynamic support in neonates: current evidence and clinical applications. graded on: a randomised trial — read from the indexed abstract — “randomized trial”
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human RCT
Vasopressin-Based Versus Norepinephrine-Based Strategy in Vasoplegic Syndrome After Cardiac Surgery: A Randomized Controlled Trial. graded on: names a randomised controlled trial — “Randomized Controlled”
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human RCT
Efficacy of Targeted Vasopressin Injection at the Recto-Uterine Endometrioid Lesion during Laparoscopic Surgery for Deep Infiltrating Endometriosis: A Randomized Clinical Trial. graded on: names a randomised controlled trial — “Randomized Clinical Trial”
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human observational
Diagnostic and Operative Utility of Bilateral Inferior Petrosal Sinus Sampling in ACTH-Dependent Cushing Syndrome using Vasopressin. graded on: an observational human design — read from the indexed abstract — “cohort”
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human RCT
NCT00358579: A Randomised, Double-blinded Multi-centre Trial Comparing Vasopressin and Adrenaline in Patients With Cardiac Arrest at the Emergency Department. (Preadmission Intravenous Vasopressin, Adrenaline Outcome Trial: PIVOT vII) graded on: a randomised trial — “Randomised, Double-blinded Multi-centre Trial”
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human observational
NCT02975999: Use of Vasopressin Following the Fontan Operation: Both Pilot and Multicenter Studies graded on: a registered clinical study — “clinicaltrials.gov”
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human observational
NCT03088345: Use of Arginine Vasopressin in Early Postoperative Management After Fontan Palliation graded on: a registered clinical study — “clinicaltrials.gov”
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human observational
NCT03204786: Intranasal Vasopressin Treatment in Children With Autism graded on: a registered clinical study — “clinicaltrials.gov”
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human RCT
NCT03636451: Assessing the Effect of Paracervical Block Volume on Pain Control for Dilation and Curettage: a Randomized Controlled Trial graded on: names a randomised controlled trial — “Randomized Controlled”
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human RCT
FDA approval NDA204485, NDA212593, NDA217569, NDA217766, ANDA211857, ANDA212944, ANDA213206, ANDA213988, ANDA214314, ANDA216963 graded on: an FDA approval (NDA204485, NDA212593, NDA217569, NDA217766, ANDA211857, ANDA212944, ANDA213206, ANDA213988, ANDA214314, ANDA216963), which requires adequate and well-controlled human investigations — “NDA204485, NDA212593, NDA217569, NDA217766, ANDA211857, ANDA212944, ANDA213206, ANDA213988, ANDA214314, ANDA216963”
Identity
- UniProt
- P01185 (precursor)
- Sequence
- CYFQNCPRG
Caveat on these identifiers
Diabetes insipidus is not an approved indication. Across all 25 current US vasopressin labels the phrase appears only as a harm and never as a use: section 5.2 "Reversible Diabetes Insipidus" (it can develop after the infusion is stopped) and section 7.5, drugs suspected of causing diabetes insipidus reducing the pressor effect. Paediatric use is not approved either — "Safety and effectiveness of Vasostrict in pediatric patients with vasodilatory shock have not been established" (section 8.4). Desmopressin, the analogue approved for diabetes insipidus, is a different molecule and its approval does not extend to vasopressin. One historic application, NDA 003402 (PITRESSIN TANNATE, vasopressin tannate, Parke Davis), is listed in Drugs@FDA as discontinued; Drugs@FDA holds no label or approval date for it, so its labelled indications are not on file.
Notes unverified prose
Standard clinical use; Pediatric Oncall
Not on file 9
7 of the 8 fields we track hold nothing on this record, and each says why. 2 further absences are named below. A blank field is a bug; a named absence is a finding.
- molecular weightnothing we hold supplies it
- molecular formulanothing we hold supplies it
- CAS registry numbernothing we hold supplies it
- PubChem identifiernothing we hold supplies it
- SMILES stringnothing we hold supplies it
- InChInothing we hold supplies it
- InChI keynothing we hold supplies it
- half-lifenothing we hold supplies it
- historic di approvalPITRESSIN TANNATE, NDA 003402, is listed in Drugs@FDA as discontinued and not withdrawn for safety or effectiveness, but carries no submissions, approval date or documents — whether that historic approval covered diabetes insipidus is unresolved rather than confirmed absent.
Each field links to every other record missing the same thing. The full ledger holds 765 gaps across 163 records.
Listed prices 1
What 1 shop we track listed for Vasopressin, read from their own public catalogues on 2026-09-14. We take no commission on these and they are not ranked by any payment — how vendors are scored.
Compare prices1 listing from 1 shop
| Vendor | Size | Price | Per mg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mountainside Medical | size not listed | $1400.00 USD |
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None of these shops lists your destination. Choose “Show all” to see every listing we hold.
Prices are the vendor's own listing, reproduced with the date we read it — never converted between currencies, and compared per milligram only where the vendor states the vial size.