The key difference between Novarel and Pregnyl is that Novarel mainly treats young males with prepubertal cryptorchidism, while Pregnyl mainly treats females to stimulate ovulation and induce pregnancy.
Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) is a polypeptide hormone produced by the placenta. It is composed of two subunits called alpha and beta subunits. HCG is a water-soluble glycoprotein and is derived from urine during pregnancy. Novarel and Pregnyl are two commercially available HCGs. They are given as an injection into a muscle.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Novarel
3. What is Pregnyl
4. Similarities – Novarel and Pregnyl
5. Novarel vs Pregnyl in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Novarel vs Pregnyl
What is Novarel?
Novarel is a medication containing a polypeptide hormone that is used to treat prepubertal cryptorchidism in young males where one or both testicles have failed to descend into the scrotum. This condition is known as undescended testicles. It is usually given by injection into muscles by health care professionals. It is also used in certain men to help in the production of testosterone, where the body does not produce sufficient amounts. This condition is known as hypogonadism. Novarel works by causing the testes to release male sex hormones such as testosterone. Novarel is also used in females to treat fertility problems. It is usually given after menotropins, which stimulate ovulation. However, Novarel should not be given to females whose ovaries no longer produce eggs properly due to primary ovarian failure. The dosage of the medication depends on the age, weight, medical condition, and response to the treatment. Usually, it is given three times a week for boys.
Novarel also causes several side effects such as headache, depression, fatigue, restlessness, edema, irritability, pain at the injection site, hypersensitivity reactions, precocious puberty, and breast development in males.
What is Pregnyl?
Pregnyl is a medication containing HCG to support the normal development of eggs in an ovary and stimulate the release of the egg during ovulation. Pregnyl is usually given for the induction of ovulation and pregnancy in anovulatory, infertile women where the cause of anovulatory is secondary and not due to the primary ovarian failure. It is also given to women who have been pretreated with human menotropins. Therefore, it is important to be used in conjunction with human menopausal gonadotropins only by experienced physicians familiar with infertility problems. It is highly purified using pyrogen-free preparation obtained from the urine of pregnant females.
Pregnyl is usually given as an intramuscular injection in multiple doses. Pregnyl causes serious reactions such as ovarian hyperstimulation, causing sudden ovarian enlargement, rupture of ovarian cysts, multiple births, and arterial thromboembolism. The dosage of Pregnyl depends on the age, weight, medical condition, and response to the treatment. The side effects include headache, restlessness, fatigue, edema, depression, and pain at the site of injection. Hypersensitivity reactions are also visible.
What are the Similarities Between Novarel and Pregnyl?
- Novarel and Pregnyl are medications containing the hormone HCG.
- They are commercially available as injections.
- They are not addictive medications.
- They show similar adverse side effects such as headache, restlessness, fatigue, edema, hypersensitivity reactions, depression, and pain at the site of injection.
- Dosages of both medications depend on age, weight, medical condition, and response to the treatment.
What is the Difference Between Novarel and Pregnyl?
Novarel is a medication that mainly treats young males with prepubertal cryptorchidism, while Pregnyl is a medication containing HCG to support the normal development of eggs in an ovary and stimulate the release of the egg during ovulation. Thus, this is the key difference between Novarel and Pregnyl. Usually, Novarel starts at a dosage of 4000 USP units and reduces to 500-1000 USP units. Pregnyl usually starts from 500-1000 USP units and increases up to 4000 USP units. Moreover, Novarel mainly targets males while Pregnyl mainly targets women.
The below infographic presents the differences between Novarel and Pregnyl in tabular form for side-by-side comparison.
Summary – Novarel vs Pregnyl
Novarel and Pregnyl are two medications containing the hormone HCG. HCG is a polypeptide hormone produced by the human placenta. These medications are usually given as an injection into a muscle. Novarel is mainly used to treat young males with prepubertal cryptorchidism. Pregnyl is mainly used to treat females to stimulate ovulation and induce pregnancy. Novarel is also used in certain men to help in the production of testosterone. Prior to the injection of Pregnyl in females, it is important that they are free from primary ovarian failure and pretreated with human menotropins. So, this summarizes the difference between Novarel and Pregnyl.
Reference:
1. “Novarel (Chorionic Gonadotropin for Injection): Uses, Dosage, Side Effects, Interactions, Warning.” RxList, RxList, 5 Aug. 2022.
2. “Novarel Injectable Uses, Side Effects & Warnings.” Drugs.com.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Pregnyl injection” By Neilsmith38 – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia