Seniors and Blood Pressure Medicines

How is high blood pressure treated?

High blood pressure medicines (also called antihypertensive medicines) can help lower your blood pressure. The goal of treatment is to reduce your blood pressure to normal levels with medicine that's easy to take and has few, if any, side effects. Your doctor may also talk to you about the benefits of lifestyle changes, such as eating a healthy diet, being physically active and losing weight if you're overweight.

What are some common medicines to treat high blood pressure?

There are 8 types of medicine used to treat high blood pressure. Your doctor will decide which type of medicine is right for you.

Diuretics (water pills) help your body get rid of extra sodium (salt) and water so your blood vessels don't have to hold so much fluid. Some examples of diuretics include benzthiazide (brand name: Exna), chlorthalidone (brand names: Hygroton, Thalitone), furosemide (brand name: Lasix), hydrochlorothiazide (some brand names: Esidrix, HydroDiuril), indapamide (brand name: Lozol) and trichlormethiazide (brand names: Diurese, Metahydrin, Naqua). Your doctor may also prescribe a combination of diuretics, such as hydrochlorothiazide combined with triamterene (brand names: Dyazide, Maxzide).

Beta-blockers make the heart beat slower so that blood passes through your blood vessels with less force. Some examples of beta-blockers include acebutolol (brand name: Sectral), atenolol (brand name: Tenormin), carvedilol (brand name: Coreg), metoprolol (brand names: Lopressor, Toprol XL), nadolol (brand name: Corgard), propranolol (brand name: Inderal) and timolol (brand name: Blocadren).

Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (also called ACE inhibitors) keep your body from making angiotensin II, a hormone that causes blood vessels to narrow. Some examples of ACE inhibitors include benazepril (brand name: Lotensin), enalapril (brand name: Vasotec), lisinopril (brand names: Prinivil, Zestril), quinapril (brand name: Accupril), ramipril (brand name: Altace) and trandolapril (brand name: Mavik).

Calcium channel blockers (also called CCBs) help keep your blood vessels from constricting (becoming narrow) by blocking calcium from entering your cells. Some examples of CCBs include amlodipine (brand name: Norvasc), diltiazem (brand names: Cardizem, Cartia, Dilacor, Tiazac), felodipine (brand name: Plendil), nicardipine (brand name: Cardene), nifedipine (brand names: Adalat, Procardia) and verapamil (some brand names: Calan, Covera, Isoptin, Verelan).

Angiotensin II receptor blockers (also called ARBs) protect your blood vessels from the effects of angiotensin II. Some examples of ARBs include candesartan (brand name: Atacand), irbesartan (brand name: Avapro), losartan (brand name: Cozaar), olmesartan (brand name: Benicar), telmisartan (brand name: Micardis) and valsartan (brand name: Diovan).

Alpha-blockers help relax your blood vessels by reducing nerve impulses. This allows your blood to pass through more easily. Some examples of alpha-blockers include doxazosin (brand name: Cardura), prazosin (brand name: Minipress) and terazosin (brand name: Hytrin).

Centrally acting drugs affect your brain and central nervous system to reduce the nerve impulses that can cause your blood vessels to narrow. Some examples of centrally acting drugs include clonidine (brand name: Catapres) and methyldopa.

Direct vasodilators relax the muscles in the blood vessel walls. This causes the blood vessels to widen. Some examples of vasodilators include hydralazine (brand name: Apresoline) and minoxidil (brand name: Loniten).

Do these medicines have any side effects?

Like all medicines, high blood pressure drugs can cause side effects. However, the side effects usually are not severe and are not experienced very often. Some common side effects of high blood pressure medicines include the following:

Tell your doctor as soon as possible if your side effects become severe.

What is a drug interaction?

If you use 2 or more drugs at the same time, the way your body processes each drug can change. When this happens, the risk of side effects from each drug increases and each drug may not work the way it should. This is called a "drug-drug interaction." Vitamins and herbal supplements can affect the way your body processes drugs too.

Certain foods or drinks can also prevent your medicine from working the way it should or make side effects worse. This is called a "drug-food interaction." For example, people taking certain CCBs may need to avoid having grapefruit or grapefruit juice.

Be certain that your doctor knows all of the over-the-counter and prescription medicines, vitamins and herbal supplements that you are taking.

Also, ask your doctor whether you need to avoid any foods or drinks while using your blood pressure medicine.