Experiences with
Indapamide

Indapamide is a type of medicine called a diuretic.

Diuretics are sometimes called "water tablets" because they make you pee more. This helps get rid of extra fluid in your body.

Indapamide is used to treat high blood pressure (hypertension). It's also sometimes used to treat heart failure and the build up of fluid in your body (oedema).

Indapamide is only available on prescription.

It comes as standard tablets and slow release tablets, which release the medicine into your body gradually.

Indapamide sometimes comes mixed with perindopril to also treat high blood pressure.

Who can take indapamide

Most adults aged 18 and over can take indapamide.

Who may not be able to take indapamide

Indapamide is not suitable for some people. To make sure it's safe for you, tell your doctor if you:

have ever had an allergic reaction to indapamide or any other medicine
are trying to get pregnant, are pregnant or breastfeeding
have liver or kidney disease
have low levels potassium or sodium, or high levels of calcium in your blood
have gout
have diabetes
have an inflammatory condition called systemic lupus erythematosus
have heart rhythm problems (such as arrhythmia)
have underactive adrenal glands (Addison's disease)
have a rare disease called porphyria

Dosage and strength

Indapamide comes as 2.5mg standard tablets, and as 1.5mg slow release tablets.

The usual dose of indapamide to treat:

heart failure is 2.5mg to 5mg, taken once a day as standard tablets
high blood pressure is 2.5mg, taken once a day as standard tablets, or 1.5mg taken once a day as slow release tablets

How to take it

It's best to take indapamide in the morning. If you take indapamide too late in the day you may have to get up during the night to go to the toilet.

Swallow the tablets whole with a drink of water. You can take indapamide with or without food.

Do not crush or chew slow release tablets, as this stops them from working properly.

How long to take it for

As with other medicines for high blood pressure or heart failure, you will usually have to take indapamide for a long time, probably for the rest of your life.

It's important to carry on taking your medicines even if you feel well. Talk to your doctor if you want to stop taking indapamide.

If you stop taking it, your blood pressure is likely to rise, and this may increase your risk of heart attack and stroke.

If you're bothered by side effects, your doctor may be able to recommend a different medicine for you.

If you get ill while taking it

Contact your doctor if:

you're ill with a high temperature
you're sweating and shaking
you're being sick (vomiting) or have severe diarrhoea

Your doctor may recommend you stop taking indapamide for 1 to 2 days until you are better.

You can start to take it again when you're eating and drinking normally. If you take indapamide when you have an illness that makes you dehydrated, it can make the dehydration worse.

If you forget to take it

If you forget to take your dose, take it as soon as you remember. However, if you usually take your dose in the morning and it is after 4pm, skip the missed dose and take your next dose at the usual time.

Do not take 2 doses to make up for a forgotten dose.

If you often forget doses, it may help to set an alarm to remind you. You could also ask your pharmacist for advice on other ways to help you remember to take your medicines.

If you take too much

If you have taken more than your prescribed dose of indapamide, you may:

feel sick (nausea) or be sick (vomit)
feel very thirsty
have diarrhoea
feel faint, dizzy or weak
feel sleepy
have muscle cramps

you take more than your prescribed dose of indapamide

Go to 111.nhs.uk or call 111 .

you take more than your prescribed dose of indapamide and you have a fit or seizure

If you need to go to A&E, do not drive. Ask someone to drive you or call 999 and ask for an ambulance.

Bring the indapamide packet or leaflet inside it, any remaining medicine, and any other medicines you take.

Common side effects

These common side effects of indapamide happen in more than 1 in 100 people. There are things you can do to help cope with them:

If you get a mild rash, speak to your doctor for advice as your treatment may need to be changed.

Try taking indapamide after a meal. Try to stick to simple foods and avoid rich or spicy meals. Drink water or squash in small, frequent sips so you do not get dehydrated.

Speak to your doctor if you feel sick or are being sick frequently, or are unable to drink properly for more than a week.

If you take the combined contraceptive pill or progestogen-only pill and you're being sick (vomit) or have severe diarrhoea for more than 24 hours, your contraception may not protect you from pregnancy. Look on the pill packet to find out what to do.

Try sitting or lying down until you feel better. If you begin to feel dizzy, lie down so that you do not faint, then sit until you feel better. Do not drive, ride a bike or use tools or machinery while you're feeling dizzy.

Speak to a doctor or pharmacist if the advice on how to cope does not help and a side effect is still bothering you or does not go away.

Serious side effects

Serious side effects are usually rare and happen in less than 1 in 1,000 people.

Tell your doctor or call 111 straight away if you:

get an irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia)
get a severe stomach pain that develops suddenly, along with feeling or being sick, diarrhoea, indigestion, a high temperature, and tenderness or swelling of your stomach – these could be signs of pancreatitis
feel or start being sick, get yellow eyes or skin, although this may be less obvious on brown or black skin, have dark pee, pale poo, tiredness and loss of appetite – these could be signs of liver disease

Serious allergic reaction

In rare cases, indapamide may cause a serious allergic reaction (anaphylaxis).

Meds New IA (H4) - serious allergic reaction

If you are taking indapamide for a long time, you will occasionally have to see your doctor or nurse to get your blood pressure checked and have blood and urine tests. This is to make sure the salts (calcium, sodium and potassium) in your blood are balanced properly and your kidneys are working well.

How often you'll need these tests will depend on the reason you're taking indapamide, whether your dose has changed recently, whether you get side effects from indapamide, or if you have any other health problems or are taking other medicines.

Other side effects

These are not all the side effects of indapamide. For a full list, see the leaflet inside your medicine packet.

Indapamide and pregnancy

Indapamide is not normally taken in pregnancy.

If you're trying to get pregnant or you are already pregnant, talk to your doctor about other medicines. Other treatments, that are considered safer, may be more suitable for you.

Indapamide and breastfeeding

Indapamide is not usually recommended while you're breastfeeding. It would not be expected to cause any harm to your baby but it can reduce the amount of breast milk you produce.

It is not known how much indapamide passes into breast milk. If you're breastfeeding, or planning to breastfeed, talk to your doctor or pharmacist, as other medicines might be better for you and your baby.

If you do need to take indapamide while you are breastfeeding your doctor or midwife will monitor your baby's weight.

If you notice that your baby is not feeding as well as usual or if you have any other concerns about your baby, then talk to your health visitor, midwife, pharmacist or doctor as soon as possible

Indapamide and fertility

There's no evidence that indapamide reduces fertility in men or women.

However, if you're trying to get pregnant, talk to your doctor first as this medicine is not usually recommended in pregnancy.

Meds New IA (H2) - Pregnancy non-urgent care card

Cautions with other medicines

Some medicines can affect the way indapamide works.

If you're taking any of these medicines, tell your doctor before starting indapamide:

medicines that treat, or might give you, an irregular heartbeat (palpitations) – including amiodarone, digoxin or sotalol
other medicines that treat high blood pressure – including ACE inhibitors such as ramipril, angiotensin receptor blockers such as candesartan, or calcium channel blockers such as amlodipine
other medicines that can decrease blood pressure, including baclofen, levodopa or clonidine
medicines used to treat mental health problems, including lithium, amitriptyline or haloperidol
medicines that can cause low levels of potassium in your blood, such as steroids, laxatives or other diuretics
painkillers known as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), including ibuprofen or naproxen
calcium tablets or other calcium supplements

Taking indapamide with everyday painkillers

Some painkillers contain a lot of sodium, which is found in salt. Too much salt can stop indapamide working properly.

Medicines that contain a lot of salt include:

soluble paracetamol
soluble co-codamol

Speak to a pharmacist or doctor to see if these medicines are safe for you to take with indapamide.

Mixing indapamide with herbal remedies and supplements

Tell your doctor if you are taking:

potassium supplements – these change the levels of potassium in your blood and can affect the way indapamide works
any remedies for heartburn and indigestion – some of these contain a lot of sodium, which is found in salt. Too much salt can stop indapamide working properly

There's not enough information to say that other herbal remedies and supplements are safe to take with indapamide. They're not tested in the same way as pharmacy and prescription medicines. They're generally not tested for the effect they have on other medicines.

Meds New IA (H2) - Cautions with other medicines alert