Catching up on emails this afternoon. Will share a few with you.
Your Name: Huma
Your Email:
Subject: Blood Pressure Medication
Message: I listen to you every Saturday morning on AM 980. I like your program very much. My husband is 56 years old and weighs 168lbs. He has had high blood pressure for the last 16 years, and the Dr started giving him Lotensin 20 milligrams once daily. 8 years ago the Dr. increased the dose to 40 milligrams, and his blood pressure is maintained at around 135/88 to 140/90. All his lipid profiles and other lab tests are normal. He does not have high cholesterol and he has a family history of diabetes and hypertension, however he is not diabetic. Now, his primary physician wants to add Amlodipne Besylate 5 milligram tablets to his dose as well to get a more stable blood pressure. I wanted to know what is the ideal blood pressure he should be maintaining with the 40 milligrams of Lotensin, and if it is necessary to start taking the new medicine as well.
Also i am interested in knowing what are the side effects of Amlodipne Besylate 5 milligram that i should be aware of.
I would really appreciate if you could help me out and answer some of my questions.
MY REPLY:
Huma,
Apologies for the delay in responding. Here are my thoughts:
- Best blood pressure is 140/90 or less. People with diabetes, kidney problems or heart disease need to keep it even lower.
- It is extremely important for your husband to control his blood pressure. This will prevent him from getting a stroke or kidney failure.
- Annoyingly as we age it's common to need more medicine to control high blood pressure. Adding in a second medicine is the best way to do this. The combo of Lotensin and Amlodipine is excellent. They act well together.
- The most common side effects of Amoldipine is edema (swelling) and constipation. We do see some other problems with Amlodipine but only in people who are diabetic and have chronic kidney disease. Thankfully your husband doesn't have these problems so no worries on this score.
Hope this helps. Thanks for listening. Don't forget I'm on the radio every Saturday morning 6-8 AM. Call me with any question or follow up question. The number to call is 888 539 2980.
Sincerely,
Dr. Joe
