Side effect of Ramipril?

[WeeLucy]

Hi I have been on Ramipril for several years but have now developed facial swelling in my cheeks that become more pronounced as the day goes on. Then in the morning after lying flat sleeping it has gone down only to gradually reoccur during the day and into the evening and so the cycle continues. I have heard that this can be a side effect of Ramipril but when I spoke to my GP he more or less said he was reluctant to change to an alternative blood pressure med from an ace inhibitor(Ramipril) so lets just see how it goes! Get back in touch in a month...

Anyone else out there heard of this? Any advice insight much appreciated...

[Tako2009]

Good morning Lucy. Difficult to change I know if you are settled with a med that works for your blood pressure. I think the possibility of swelling in throat, face or elsewhere can be a side effect of some ace inhibitors. A long time ago I took a similar med - Enalapril - and it caused swelling in my throat which would come up in the morning and then go down again rather like you are experiencing. I ended up needing an operation on my throat after having my symptoms dismissed by my GP for months. So in your case I would just keep a close watch on your symptoms and go back to your GP if they don’t improve. Liz

[WeeLucy in reply to Tako2009]

Thank you Liz...that's good to know...I find the GPs in my surgery are often dismissive of any symptoms such as this as I had a very bad allergic reaction to Lipitor...I was absolutely covered in very itchy hives and they just asked me to persevere for a month or so then reluctantly agreed to change it ...I don't like to make a fuss and my next appointment with my cardiologist is not for the foreseeable ur with this pandemic...But I appreciate your help...♥

[Hidden]

Have you read over the leaflet in the box. There should be a section there on side effects, known and possible. Maybe other information on the drug as well.

[WeeLucy in reply to Hidden]

Hi there careuny, the swelling was mentioned as a rare side effect when I checked the list of side effect symptoms and it did say it could appear at any time from when the drug was first commenced to any time in the future no matter how long you had been taking the drug...I might put it all down in writing to my cardiologist as my GP is reluctant to change any meds I think, without the say so of my consultant who I have not seen for over a year now re the virus restrictions....and goodness know when I will see him again unless in an emergency which hopefully will not happen...:-)...Thank you for your input with this...it all helps...Take care...♥

[cuore]

These are the noted side effects on Drugs.comdrugs.com/sfx/ramipril-side...

Rxlist.com does include skin swelling as a side effect:

rxlist.com/consumer_ramipri...

I would fine "reluctant" a difficult word to appreciate from a GP since you have been on Rampril for several years. You might want to ask about an ARB class which is in a different class. Tako2009 has given you wise words, and from experience, an experience your GP is most likely unaware of.

[WeeLucy in reply to cuore]

Thank you Cuore, and you're right I think I need to pursue this some more, as I am also a counsellor and some days the swelling is so evident, that by early evening it can restrict my speech to a certain degree, when speaking to my clients. I did tell him this but to no avail....it would be easier if I could have a face to face consultation with my GP but at the moment they are only speaking to patients via phone! Think I need to be braver as that's what I would advise my own clients to be in that situation...take my own advice as it were... Thank you for your help and I am now going to check out the link you sent too...Much appreciated...Take care...♥

[cuore in reply to WeeLucy]

👍. Do keep us informed how you solved the problem, i.e., most likely your change of meds. To continue to suffer with restricted speech is asking too much.

[WeeLucy in reply to cuore]

Thank you ...you are right...sometimes I just need to hear that advice from someone else to make me realise I am not making a fuss about nothing as my GP intimated....much appreciated...♥

[WeeLucy in reply to cuore]

Hello Cuore,,,just an update on my issues with Ramipril...I took your advice and took the matter into my own hands and I decided to bypass my own GP who was very dismissive of my concerns and wrote a letter to my cardio consultant and sent it next day post on the Wednesday before Xmas.

To my surprise my consultant did get back to me and said to stop the Ramipril and he would see how that went and I would get an appointment at the cardio clinic for a 24 hour BP monitor before he put me on an alternative blood pressure drug.

I don't know how soon that will happen with the Covid restrictions on appointments.

The effects of the Ramipril is still there re the angioedema but does appear to becoming less so to some extent so it is just a matter of wait and see... Your support and advice was invaluable and I thank you for that. Will let you know how it goes...hopefully it will continue to improve. Thanks again Cuore...much appreciated always...

[cuore in reply to WeeLucy]

Excellent, and excellent of your consultant to order a 24 hour BP monitor. A recent Dr. Sanja Gupta video discussed that is was the drop or not in blood pressure during the night that really defines where someone is at in blood pressure rather than taking general guidelines for everyone. This "drop" is tested using a 24 hour blood pressure monitor. I thought it was an excellent video and it was posted recently by someone in HealthUnlocked. I can locate it for you if you wish.

So glad you are off an ACE inhibitor that no longer works for you and was doing more damage than good. Looking forward to hearing better results.

[WeeLucy in reply to cuore]

Good morning Cuore, thank you for your quick response...:-)... I would definitely be interested in seeing that video if you can locate it for me...that would be great. Not sure when I will be able to access the blood pressure monitor due to the restrictions in place in our local hospital, but will perhaps contact the cardio clinic in a few weeks to see if there are any appointments available...Thanks again...

[cuore in reply to WeeLucy]

Hope you can access the site:

youtube.com/watch?v=W6klXdj...(Not working as expected?)

[WeeLucy in reply to cuore]

Thank you Cuore...very interesting...I will phone the cardio clinic tomorrow and see if there is an appointment for me in the system as yet. I need to watch more of these videos...what an amazing man...Thanks again.

[cuore in reply to WeeLucy]

I couldn't copy and paste as per below. So in the address bar type in "Dr. Sanjay Gupta The Importance of Nocturnal Blood Pressure" for You-tube and you should get it. , and if that doesn't work it was posted in the January 9, 2021 recent blog.

[cuore in reply to WeeLucy]

I think you can access here because it worked for me:youtu.be/W6klXdj4SaU(Not working as expected?)

[Hidden in reply to WeeLucy]

Hi weelucy.I developed Ace Inhibitor angioedema after 3 weeks of Ramipril in July. I've been severely affected and 5 months later still not right. I felt swelling round my eye first, then cheeks, throat even into ear. I can also feel swelling in my stomach and my digestion is affected. No itchy rash. It's also made me chronically dehydrated due to digestive problems and then my kidney function took a knock which has really upset me. I'm struggling to get on top of it all. It's better than it was now I've stopped the drug but I'm wondering how many months it will take and v worried about kidney damage. Can't get to see an actual Dr and phonecalls don't help. Like you I work with people face to face and it's horrible to be like this. All in all I feel a physical and emotional wreck and wish I'd never taken it.

[WeeLucy in reply to Hidden]

Oh what a shame that has happened to you and your reaction to the drug was really quick too..it also seems much more severe and debilitating than mine is.I had been on Ramipril for many years so they were reluctant to put the blame on the drug.

However, after contacting this forum I decided to bypass my own GP who was very dismissive of my concerns and wrote a letter to my cardio consultant and sent it next day post on the Wednesday before Xmas.

To my surprise he did get back to me and said to stop the Ramipril and he would see how that went and I would get an appointment at the cardio clinic for a 24 hour BP monitor before he put me on an alternative blood pressure drug.

I don't know how soon that will happen with the Covid restrictions on appointments.

I checked how long it took to remove the drug from my system and some say within a few weeks and others it takes longer and for you and me unfortunately the Ramipril is still affecting us today...

Although it is still affecting me as well to some degree...some evenings the swelling is hardly noticeable other evenings for no reason that I know of it is more noticeable and more pronounced too, so I suppose like you I just have to wait and see what happens over the next few weeks and months...

I wish I could give you more hope and some other form of help too...but any time you wish to talk...to share then please feel to contact me and I know everyone else on this forum is very supportive and helpful too...Sometimes it helps just to know that someone else has the same issues as you and that you are not alone...Take care and hopefully things will improve for you soon...thank you for sharing too...