Greetings fellow adventurers, I`m a little worried about a medication I`ve just started taking, Olmetec 10 mg,

[Tony-LakeDistrict]

as well as being a blood pressure medication, I`m being given it for one of it`s side affects. Initially it lowers kidney function, faster than natural ageing, but some time in the future natural kidney function will be worse than that under this medication. That's how it`s supposed to work.

I can`t find anything on the internet, other than it being a blood pressure medication

So has anybody else gone down this route.

[Jann]

Hi Tony, No I am just on the BP meds....but I will ask about when I see my consultant. I will aslo follow the other ansers you get with interest.

Hope you are feeling better than late last year. All the best. Jann

[John_Mills Volunteer]

I have been looking in the BNF it sounds complicated... I think this drug releases something (which I cannnot pronounce) which is a side effect which affects the kidneys...BUT I think John maybe able to answer this question more simply than I can.. so he will try later Tony.. if that is ok...

Susan

[RichardE Volunteer]

Hi Tony,

I've also had a good look around on the internet and like you can only find reference to Olmetec being used to treat high BP.

But there are warnings for patients with reduced kidney function - it is still prescribed but at the lower dose of 10mg and you should be closely monitored.

As far as I can tell, Olemtec in its own right simply relaxes the veins in order to reduce blood pressure. But it can be prescribed with hydrochlorothiazide (Olmetec Plus) which is a diuretic and causes the kidneys to remove more water from the blood and thus reduce blood pressure further.

So I'm personally not sure the information you have been given is quite correct. I'd be tempted to go back to your consultant and query his comment to make sure he's not perhaps confused Olmetec with another medicine you are taking.

But it will be interesting to see if John has a view or knowledge on this question.

Regards,

Richard.

[Tony-LakeDistrict]

Hi I was prescribed Olmetec my last visit to Preston, it replaced Doxazosin, with the intended results that I have described above. I would like to find out if anyone else has been prescribed this medication for the same reason, & if so how has the experience been.

Dr Gibson has retired, so my last visit was with a new specialist who has an impeccable reputation with vasculitis, but it takes a couple of visits to feel easy with someone when the outcome can be so important & my concentration is not the best at the moment.

I feel a bit of an idiot, but it is for peace of mind, thanks

Tony

[John_Mills Volunteer]

The "proper" name for olmetec is olmesartan medoxomil. You'll find more information under that name. As Richard has said, there are 2 types.

One of the several reasons for taking anti-hypertensive drugs is to reduce blood pressure to avoid damaging the kidneys. But as 30% of the blood in each heartbeat goes through the kidneys, if there is a problem with the kidneys the blood pressure can be raised. Sort of chicken & egg situation! But then if the blood pressure is too low the kidneys don't work properly.

There are sensors in the kidneys that detect if blood volume and/or the blood pressure is getting too low or if the amount of sodium chloride in the blood is too low. A natural hormone produced in the kidneys, called renin, acts to raise the blood pressure and makes the kidneys reabsorb sodium which in turn increases the blood volume. I've missed out a lot of other bits about angiotensin and angiotensin2.

So as you see, like so many things in the body, it is a VERY complicated process. Olmesartan intereferes with the action of renin.

I think what your doctor was trying to explain is this idea that lowering the blood pressure protects the kidneys in the long term

John

[Tony-LakeDistrict]

The specialist drew a graph to show me what was going to happen to kidney function. One line the Olmetec line went down very fast, & then started to level out not flat but gradual, the other line, Doxazosin or normal aging was a gradual lack of kidney function, sometime in the future the two lines crossed, which sounds great, but its the first stage that has me worried.

going down from 30% to maybe 20% function is a lot to take in

Tony

[braindamage]

A spanner in the works? I'm on Amlodipine and Doxazosin and have been for 3 and a half years. Recent tests show my Kidney function had risen from 27% to 66%. not bad for a 67year old? Whatever happens, I hope it works for you.