In the early years (1990s) of my experimentation with nootropics I took the then-prominent combination of Piracetam and Hydergine, which was the No. 1 choice of drug.
I experienced increased verbal fluency and better memory. However I had a nasty bout of paranoia (short-lived but v unpleasant) and I discontinued taking them together. That taught me a lesson about messing around with your brain chemistry.
I’ve taken piracetam sometimes since, but only got hold of Hydergine once (now-discontinued Anti-AgingSystems HyPro).
Anecdotal and some medical evidence seemed to show an effect on people with dementia. Now two close relatives are showing symptoms. However hydergine seems to have disappeared from the marketplace. Novartis India discontinued it.
Anybody know of any sources? What effect did it have on you if you took it?
Generic Hydergine is available ,in the US, requires a prescription . GoodRx $612.00 for 90 x 1mg as of 06/15/2026 with their discount code number at a local pharmacy.
Here’s what I found for the US market as of June 2026.
Availability status. The brand Hydergine (Novartis) and all its original FDA-approved formulations (oral solution, oral tablet, sublingual tablet) are discontinued. However, generic ergoloid mesylates tablets remain available by prescription (Rx only) through standard US pharmacies. It is also available as a compounding API for pharmacies that compound it.
Where to get it (USA):
Major retail chains — CVS, Walgreens, Walmart, etc. — can fill generic ergoloid mesylates 1 mg oral tablets (CVS lists NDC 53489-0281-01). Sublingual 0.5 mg/1 mg tablets also exist generically but stock varies; call ahead.
Discount-coupon platforms covering those same pharmacies: GoodRx, Hippo (hellohippo.com), RxSpark, WellRx.
Compounding pharmacies can prepare it from USP-grade active ingredient (e.g., Medisca supplies the API).
Pricing (1 mg oral tablets, most common generic):
Average US retail: ~$643 for 90 tablets.
GoodRx coupon: as low as ~$593 (about 8% off).
GoodRx Gold: as low as ~$200.
Drugs.com reference: roughly $577 for 100 tablets.
Pricing varies by pharmacy and location, so it’s worth comparing coupons before filling. One caution echoed by Drugs.com: avoid unverified online pharmacies selling “Hydergine,” as counterfeit product is a known risk for this discontinued brand.
This is informational, not medical advice — a prescription is required, so confirm specifics with your pharmacist or prescriber.
Here’s the UK and European picture for generic Hydergine (co-dergocrine mesilate / ergoloid mesylates) as of June 2026.
United Kingdom — effectively unavailable. In the UK the drug is called co-dergocrine mesilate (brand: Hydergine 4.5 mg tablets). The NHS dictionary of medicines (dm+d) flags it as “Actual Products not Available” and “Invalid to prescribe in NHS primary care,” and OpenPrescribing shows essentially no NHS prescribing. So it is not realistically obtainable through normal UK pharmacy/NHS channels. No current Drug Tariff price is listed.
Note: a £196.94 listing you’ll see (Scientific Labs / Merck, code BP091) is a British Pharmacopoeia reference standard — a lab analytical chemical, not a medicine for patient use, so disregard that for pricing purposes.
Europe — still registered in some countries, no longer in others. Co-dergocrine is no longer marketed in many Western European markets but remains registered/available in pockets, generally under local brand names rather than “Hydergine.” Reported availability includes Italy, Poland, Portugal, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and a few others, under names such as Hydergin, Hydergin Spezial, and Cripar. A 4.5 mg tablet pack is catalogued in EU medicine databases (myHealthbox). Availability shifts year to year, so it needs confirmation with a pharmacy in the specific country.
Pricing. There is no consolidated, reliable European retail price for this drug — it’s a low-volume legacy product and most price aggregators (GoodRx, PharmacyChecker) only carry US figures, with no international mail-order listings. In countries where it’s still dispensed, it’s typically a modestly priced generic, but you’d need a quote from a national pharmacy to get a real number.
Practical takeaway: there’s no straightforward UK or pan-European retail source. The realistic routes are (1) a private prescription filled in a country where it’s still registered, or (2) a compounding pharmacy preparing it from co-dergocrine mesilate API. Avoid unverified online “Hydergine” sellers — counterfeits are common for this discontinued brand. This is informational only, not medical advice; a prescription is required.
Thanks for doing all this research. The result seems to be that without anybody producing an API (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient) that there is no realistic possibility of getting hold of it.