Drug & supplement interaction

Adrafinil + Nimodipine

Nimodipine brand names: Nimotop, Nymalize.

Moderate Interaction
The bottom line Moderate

Nimodipine falls into 2 drug categories that Adrafinil can interact with; the most serious is rated moderate. Theoretically, adrafinil might reduce the effects of antihypertensive drugs.

Read the full interaction report
SeverityModerate
LikelihoodPossible
Interactions2
EvidenceD
What do Severity, Likelihood & Evidence mean?
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Interaction report

Adrafinil and Nimodipine

These two interact in 2 distinct ways. Each one is explained separately below.

Why Are There 2 Interactions?

Adrafinil interacts with whole categories of medication. Nimodipine falls into 2 of those categories, so it can interact with Adrafinil in 2 different ways. We’ve listed each one below — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them (Moderate).

Moderate

ANTIHYPERTENSIVE DRUGS

1 of 2

Why this applies to Nimodipine

Nimodipine falls under ANTIHYPERTENSIVE DRUGS — the group Adrafinil interacts with.

Theoretically, adrafinil might reduce the effects of antihypertensive drugs.
Adrafinil is a precursor to the stimulant prescription drug modafinil. Modafinil has been shown to increase diastolic and systolic blood pressure. Retrospective analyses show that patients taking modafinil had a small but increased rate of requiring new antihypertensive drugs or increased use of antihypertensive drugs when compared with placebo.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Interaction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.

Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Dr. Brian Staiger explains PharmD, Clinical Pharmacist

Here's the thing to keep in mind: adrafinil turns into modafinil in your liver, and modafinil tends to nudge blood pressure up a bit. Nimodipine works in the opposite direction. It relaxes blood vessels (mostly in the brain) to ease blood flow after a brain bleed. So in theory, the stimulant effect of adrafinil could blunt some of what nimodipine is doing.

I'll be honest, this is a theoretical concern based on how these compounds behave, not strong patient studies, so the actual real-world effect may be small. Still, nimodipine is given in a very serious, closely watched situation, so this isn't a time to be adding an unregulated supplement on your own. Please run it by your doctor or pharmacist first.

References
  1. Provigil (modafinil) [package insert]. North Wales, PA: Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. Published: January 2015. Accessed on: Nov 11, 2022.
Moderate

CYTOCHROME P450 3A4 (CYP3A4) SUBSTRATES

2 of 2

Nimodipine also falls under CYTOCHROME P450 3A4 (CYP3A4) SUBSTRATES.

Theoretically, adrafanil might reduce levels and clinical effects of CYP3A4 substrates.
Adrafinil is a precursor to the stimulant prescription drug modafinil. Modafinil has been shown to weakly induce CYP3A4 activity.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Possible Evidence D

Interaction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.

Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Dr. Brian Staiger explains PharmD, Clinical Pharmacist

Here's the gist for this pair. Once your body turns adrafinil into modafinil, that modafinil can mildly speed up a liver enzyme called CYP3A4. Nimodipine relies heavily on CYP3A4 to do its job, so a faster enzyme could clear it out a little quicker and leave less of it working in your system.

Why that matters: nimodipine is given after a brain bleed (subarachnoid hemorrhage) to keep blood vessels relaxed, and you really want it doing its full job. Honestly, though, this concern is theoretical and based on how the drugs behave, not on real patient reports, and the effect is thought to be weak. Nimodipine is also a serious, supervised medication, so please loop in your doctor or pharmacist before mixing anything with it.

References
  1. Urban AE, Cubala WJ. The role of eugeroics in the treatment of affective disorders. Psychiatr Pol. 2020;54(1):21-33. PubMed
  2. Provigil (modafinil) [package insert]. North Wales, PA: Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. Published: January 2015. Accessed on: Nov 11, 2022.

What These Ratings Mean

Every interaction above is graded three ways — here’s the key to each label.

Severity how clinically significant the interaction is
Major

Clinically significant. Avoid the combination, or use only under close professional supervision.

Moderate

Usually worth avoiding or managing — may need monitoring, a dose change, or timing apart.

Minor

Generally not serious. Be aware of it and mention it to your pharmacist.

Likelihood how strong the evidence is that the interaction actually happens in people
  • LikelyWell-controlled human studies have demonstrated the likely existence of this interaction.
  • ProbableInteraction has not been documented in well-controlled studies, however, the interaction has been demonstrated in some small human studies or in controlled animal studies in conjunction with multiple case reports.
  • PossibleInteraction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.
  • UnlikelyInteraction has been demonstrated in animal or in lab research but has been shown not to occur in humans.
Evidence the quality of the studies behind the rating (graded A–D)
  • AHigh-quality meta-analysis (quantitative systematic review).
  • BCase-control study.
  • CConsensus.
  • DAnecdotal evidence.

These ratings are for information only. Never start, stop, or otherwise change your therapy before speaking with your provider.

Keep it in perspective

Adrafinil Also Interacts With Other Medications

Adrafinil has 1 major, 1,055 moderate known drug interactions in our database — the Nimodipine one above is among them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Adrafinil

Covers the 2,830 medications we’ve checked against Adrafinil. Pick one to open its full report.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Nimodipine

This page covers Adrafinil only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Nimodipine page lists 227 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), American Hellebore (major), American Mistletoe (major), Grapefruit (major) and St. John's Wort (major).

By severity: 6 major · 180 moderate · 41 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Nimodipine page

“Nimodipine (Nimotop, Nymalize) is given after bleeding around the brain to stop blood vessels from clamping down, and the supplement interactions on file earn real caution, not a shrug. Of the 227 ingredients listed, most either interfere with CYP3A4, the liver enzyme that clears nimodipine, or lower blood pressure on their own and sta…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Nimodipine interaction page

One more smart check

Taking Adrafinil as Part of a Dietary Supplement Product? Check It for Interactions

We hold 7 real supplement products containing Adrafinil, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Adrafinil. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Nimodipine too, on top of Adrafinil — and those would not show on this page. Find your product and we’ll check every ingredient on its label:

How much people look this up

Where Adrafinil and Nimodipine Sit Against Everything Else

Out of every supplement and medication people look up on HelloPharmacist, here is where these two land this week — and which way each has been moving.

Supplement Adrafinil
Top half

#467 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Nimodipine
Steady interest

#2,072 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today

Position among everything looked up on this site, not a measure of how commonly either one is used or how important it is. A supplement can climb this list because of a news story. It counts every request to the page, automated ones included, and nothing here identifies anyone.

Supplement

About Adrafinil

What is Adrafinil?

Adrafinil
  • Wakefulness and alertness
  • Fatigue
  • Focus and concentration
  • Cognitive enhancement (nootropic)
  • Daytime sleepiness

Adrafinil is a synthetic compound that the body converts into modafinil, a prescription wakefulness-promoting drug. It is sometimes sold as a nootropic supplement, but it is unregulated, carries real risks (especially to the liver), and is banned in some sports and countries. Talk with a doctor or pharmacist before using it.

Read the full Adrafinil monograph & all interactions
Medication

About Nimodipine

What Is Nimodipine Used For?

Brand names: Nimotop, Nymalize

Nimodipine — available as capsules and oral solution — is used to improve neurological outcomes after a subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH), a type of bleeding that occurs around the brain when an intracranial berry aneurysm ruptures. It works to reduce the incidence and severity of ischemic deficits (areas of the brain damaged by reduced blood flow) that can follow this kind of bleed.

This use applies across nimodipine capsules, nimodipine oral solution, and Nymalize oral solution. It is indicated for adult patients regardless of how severe their neurological condition is at the time treatment begins.

See full Nimodipine drug information
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Adrafinil

Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Adrafinil — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.

1Major
1,055Moderate
0Minor
1,773No known interaction
Major

1 interaction

Moderate

1,055 interactions

Showing 60 of 1,055 moderate interactions — see all 1,055 on the Adrafinil page.

No interaction 1,773 drugs checked — show the list
Sources

Sources & How We Checked

Interaction details are evidence-graded and sourced from the Natural Medicines database. The medication overview comes from MedlinePlus.

Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists. See our data sources and editorial standards for how this information is built and checked.

Parts of this content are provided by the Therapeutic Research Center, LLC.

DISCLAIMER: Currently this does not check for drug-drug interactions. This is not an all-inclusive comprehensive list of potential interactions and is for informational purposes only. Not all interactions are known or well-reported in the scientific literature, and new interactions are continually being reported. Input is needed from a qualified healthcare provider including a pharmacist before starting any therapy. Application of clinical judgment is necessary.

© 2021 Therapeutic Research Center, LLC

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Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Adrafinil and Nimodipine Together: Common Questions

Can you take Adrafinil with Nimodipine?
There is a moderate interaction, so it may be acceptable with monitoring or timing changes — but check with your pharmacist first. Read the full details on this page and confirm with your pharmacist before combining them.
Why are there 2 interactions listed for Adrafinil and Nimodipine?
Nimodipine belongs to more than one drug category, and Adrafinil interacts with each of those categories a little differently. We list every one so nothing is missed — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them.
How serious is the Adrafinil and Nimodipine interaction?
We rate it Moderate. This combination may require monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separating the times you take each one. Consult your pharmacist before using them together.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

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This information is for education only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always check with your pharmacist or doctor before starting, stopping, or combining supplements and medications.