Amlodopine & Losartan

[11Dusty]

I am 53 and have had high bp since age 19. It had been controlled for many years and was on nifedipine but when discontinued moved to amlodopine 5mg. In September 24 I experienced few incidents of chest pain & breathlessness with suspected heart attack. A &E rules this out but highlighted my bp was worryingly high Amlodopine was increased & losartan added. Cardiology tests confirms left ventricular hypertrophy due to bp but other issues. Since Sep 24 I have continued to experience breathlessness, chest pain & cough/cold symptoms. BP was still high & now losartan has been increased & currently on 10mg Amlodopine & 100mg losartan & wondering if my continued symptoms are due to side effects of the medication?

[Happyrosie]

I personally think that it would be a good idea to talk to a pharmacist about this. Preferably one of those employed by your doctor’s group of surgeries, failing that your dispensing pharmacist. They are the people who know about drug side effects and inter reactions.

I imagine you’ve already check the pack leaflets and that hasn’t helped.

[11Dusty in reply to Happyrosie]

Thank for replying, I have checked the leaflet and not common side effects but I had been on Amlodopine for a while before experiencing the symptoms. I will see if my GP has a pharmacist I can speak to

[SeaDog100]

Hi 11Dusty. Breathlessness, Chest Pain, Cough, Rhinitis (inflammation/blocked nose) are all on the side effects list for Amlodipine. My mum has just been taken off it for these reasons and her symptoms have improved dramatically. I’m not saying you’re the same but it seems a possibility. I would definitely talk to a pharmacist and get a few opinions as, in my experience, it’s quite hard to get some doctors to accept that symptoms are due to side effects of medications which is probably why they remain at ‘1 in 1,000’ etc. on leaflets as no one reports them. I have also had these side effects whilst on Lercanidipine which is also a calcium channel blocker. It wasn’t until I met a great doctor who told me that lots of people have various side effects from blood pressure medications and that we would work together to try different ones until I found the right one for me. Although I’ll probably never see that same doctor again, it has given me the courage to persevere and to question.

[11Dusty]

Thanks for replying. I think as they were not listed as common side effects & I’ve been on it for a while I had dismissed these. I will be calling GP tomorrow to see their pharmacist. I’ve been on many different BP medications over the years all with varying side effects but as BP had been stable for many years & no major issues I just hadn’t considered that my symptoms could be caused by the tablets. I was under a consultant when my BP was not being controlled by varying medication so think if indoor get anywhere with the pharmacist I will ask to be referred.