Reactions to medication (angioedema)

[Trooke]

I was diagnosed with hypertension nearly thirty years ago and it was so bad I was bleeding from my nose and other places and was confined to my house for a while

After multiple medications I got back to normal.

Then out of the blue I suffered from anaphylactic shock symptoms which was traced to ramipril. However after stopping ramipril I continued with the symptoms forcing me to give up work.

I was diagnosed with angioedema (without wheals) or acquired angioedema with frequent perhaps not life threatening attacks but nonetheless scary. These appeared as forcible choking fits, with my uvula swelling and my right cheek also swelling.

Immunology at Broadgreen hospital managed to partially control the angioedema with fexofenadine (anti histamines)

My blood pressure was reasonably controlled but over the last year or so the angioedema increased and some fits were so bad my wife wanted to call an ambulance.

I went to my new gp and we agreed to halve my dose of lercanidipine that I take for blood pressure. After a week or two the angioedema subsided. However, the blood pressure rose.

I'm now in a quandary and tomorrow I'll be back in Broadgreen looking for for some other strategies to manage my blood pressure and reduce the angioedema. Over the years I've developed reactions to various blood pressure medications and am running out of options.

Is there anyone there who has had similar problems?

[Lulu2607]

Hi Trooke. I see no one replied to your post which is from some time ago now. I've just seen it and wanted to tell you I suffered angioedema after taking ramipril for a short while. I was a mess and it messed up my kidney results causing an aki. After stopping it some of the symptoms, choking etc subsided but facial swelling never really went. After months of debilitating symptoms it was eventually found I'd become severely hypothyroid. My results were off the scale. I've been taking meds for this for about seven months now and the swelling etc from the angioedema has finally gone. I don't know whether the shock of the reaction to the meds brought it on but I said no to any more bp meds. My confidence in my health has suffered now which unfortunately adversely affects bp but I too wary to try any more bp meds. Hope you're getting better and managed to sort your health issues. Lulu