Lisinopril side effect question

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T

Tass

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 25, 2009
Messages
100
Location
Houston TX
Was prescribed Lisinopril, 5 mg 1xday, to preserve renal function. Never had issues with HBP, etc. After about 10 days on it, I've felt lousy-scratchy throat, mouth hurts like I might have ulcers, low grade fever, just really blah. Does this go away? Flu-like symptoms are on the list of side effects, but can't seem to find out if this will sort itself out or not.

Have a follow up on Friday with the doc but curious as to whether or not this is really side effect or i'm coming down with something.

Tass
 
These are all possible side effects whether your doctor recognizes it or not - however unusual and however rare. It may simply be coincidence, and you could just have a cold. The problem is that you need this drug or a similar drug to protect your kidneys, so you should be very sure that it is in fact causing the symptoms. I will tell you that I experience an unproductive cough and extremely annoying post-nasal drip when on ace inhibitors such as lisinopril. It was one big reason I switched to an Angiotensin Receptor Blocker.

What I might do in this situation is take my medication for xx weeks, discontinue the medicine (only with your doctor's blessing) long enough to see if there's a difference or improvement in side effects, restart the medicine again to see if the symptoms come back, and then repeat the process until it's obvious.

There are other classes of drugs that are nephroprotective, such as losartan potassium aka cozaar. Losartan acts in a very similar way as lisinopril but probably has fewer side effects. The protection of losartan is well documented.
 
Thanks for the info. I've not suffered through any colds, etc. for so long this took me by surprise. May just be a coincidence.
 
It can cause cough. Thought this could have been part of my problem...but I've been off for 4 months now and still have cough...so not.
 
talk to your doctor about your experiences and stick up for yourself if you're sure it's correlated. You are not crazy, this stuff happens. The doctor may say things that make you think you're the only person in the world that's ever had a sore throat and malaise from ACE inhibitors, but I promise you are not the first or the last. If the doctor doesn't help find the right med, you may need to see a specialist for this issue that has high volumes and higher IQ.

The very best doctor I've ever seen for hypertension is a specialist at UofM. He's a flexible thinker, he sees tons of people on bp/cardiac meds and he's willing to listen. Like really listen. Get a doc like that.
 
on 40 mg for hbp, at first suffered with sore throat etc, but over time it has got better, although even now can get a little horse neh neh lol
 
I have taken 20 mg twice a day for several years with no side effects but these things are often really specific to individuals. If you feel that your problem is a side effect, no matter how rare, I agree with Duff Man that you need to be persistent with your Doctor to investigate further. This is not the kind of drug that is going to be a problem if you stop taking it for a couple of weeks. You will only know if you try. Take care.

Larry
 
I'd be careful about stopping it... I could definitely feel it when I stopped taking my ace inhibitor even for a day. You should be able to feel relief in your symptoms within a few days, anyway... but remember, we're not doctors and you should talk to yours about stopping it. At least talk to the nurse at your doc's office.

At the very least, monitor your blood pressure closely during the periods you discontinue the med.
 
Hello Tass, I take 5mg of Lisinopril a day. The only side affect my doctor said I might have is a little bit of a cough. That has not happen to me though. I have been taking Lisinopril for 3 months now.

Vinnie
 
Duff Man said:
These are all possible side effects whether your doctor recognizes it or not - however unusual and however rare. It may simply be coincidence, and you could just have a cold. The problem is that you need this drug or a similar drug to protect your kidneys, ...
Click to expand...

How does it protect kidneys? From what?

I have been on 5mg a day for 3.5 months. I did have the cough, but I went away after a good hard bicycle ride.

Scott
 
I am on Enalapril (Vasotec) and I experience the dry tickle cough regularly. When I went into A-Flutter they took me off of the Enalapril and put me on a high dose of Diltiazem (Cardizem) in addition to increasing my dose of Metoprolol (Lopressor) which I had been on all along. At the time controlling my heart rate was the priority. When I went off of the Enalapril the cough disappeared. I had successful catheter ablation and now I am back on the Enalipril and the cough is back. It is annoying but it is the best drug to slow the progression of my dilated aortic root and ascending aorta so I put up with it. Although the majority of people don't experience it I believe it is listed as the most common side effect of the drug.
 
scott.eitman said:
How does it protect kidneys? From what?

I have been on 5mg a day for 3.5 months. I did have the cough, but I went away after a good hard bicycle ride.

Scott
Click to expand...

Scott, your kidneys are probably fine, but sometimes bloodwork indicates a problem with kidneys on the horizon if action isn't taken... so a doc will put that person on an ace inhibitor. Most people take ace inhibitors for hypertension, and you probably are too. It just works to protect the kidneys in certain disease processes that I'm not really familiar with. I know that hypertension, inflammation and diabetes can actually cause kidney disease, but I'm not sure of the exact progression that happens inside of the kidney.
 
I *was* on 5mg lisinopril for about 4 months post-op from my second OHS and started getting the dry cough, as well as tightness in my throat and chest. Originally was taken off my beta blocker because of other side effects, and my doc was hoping the chest and throat tightness would go away as a result, however it stayed the same, maybe even a little worse. Took myself off the lisinopril about 2 weeks ago, and the symptoms improved and went away. Going to go back to my doc next week and let him know and talk to him about alternatives. I've been religiously watching my BP and HR with being off the beta blocker and now that I am off the lisinopril have continued to watch them close. So far, so good. I know there are good reasons for being on various meds, but man, the throat tightness and chest tightness made me think I was having a heart attack. So glad they're gone. Funny thing was, didn't have those issues when I was swimming or working out (although the beta blocker was messing me up; never been on one that didn't mess me up over the last 8 years. I'm glad to be off those)
Not that I advocate quitting meds on your own. If my side effects weren't so bad I would have stayed on the lisinopril. Hopefully I won't have to go back onto anything. BP and HR are great and i feel better than I have in a long time.
Anyway, just my 2c to say, some of us are the unlucky 1% that get some or all of the side effects that are listed. Even the best meds for some people can seriously mess up others.
Hope your throat gets better.

--Dan
 
Thanks for the replies. I think my issues stemmed mainly from a nasty bout of reflux. (I had soft pretzles for breakfast every day that week, and I forgot they don't agree with me.)

Doc was concerned about the cough. Want's to watch it (trying to decide if it's allergy/drainage related or drug). He also expressed some concern about how low my bp was. I have usually had low-normal bp anyway and the Lisinopril has lowered it considerably. It was 88/60 in the dr. office. His suggestion was to 1/2 my diuretic (which also lowers bp) and keep an eye on it. I went out today and picked up a home monitor, so we'll see what happens.

Haven't gotten the blood results back, but he did agree to run a test for autoimmune disease (Lupus was my main concern as it can affect heart/kidneys). Keeping fingers crossed the kidney numbers are better due to the new drugs.

Tass
 
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