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Carvediol Bad side Effects - advice & getting weaning off
Hello . I am apologizing in advance for the long post- it's complicated
I am new to this so any suggestions would be greatly appreciated:-)
I am taking medication for high blood pressure . I was taking Benicar 40 mgs & carvediol 12.5 Mgs .
My insurance decided they did not want to pay for the generic for Benicar anymore so I went to my Emory Cardiologist to see what else I could do . Please keep in mind that I am very sensitive to medication and most of the time get the unusual or rare side effects from meds. The Cardiologist said I should swap from Benicar 40 mgs to Losartan Potassium 100 mgs . He said since the Losartan Potassium is not as effective as the Benicar that I should go up on the carvediol from 12.5 mgs , twice daily to 25 Mgs twice daily . I was okay with that and went along as usual . After about a week or 2 on this combination of medication , my left arm & leg started to hurt really bad . A couple days after that my left jaw and left shoulder and back started to hurt . A couple days after that I started having chest pains so bad I had to call 911 because I thought I was having a heart attack . I went to Emory University and they checked my cardiac enzymes and said that they were fine & that I did not have a heart attack . They were not sure what happened . I went back to the Cardiologist the next day and told him of the pains and he gave me Nitro Glycerin . It really did help with the chest pains . He scheduled a echocardiogram, which came out fine , a treadmill stress test, which came out fine , a nuclear stress test, which came out fine & then a heart cath which came out completely normal . He said my heart was clean and I had no blockages whatsoever . I told him my chest was still hurting , my jaw , my left shoulder and leg was still hurting . He gave me a long acting nitrate (isorbiside) and some more refills of the Nitro glycerin . He said my heart was fine and there was nothing else he could do for me . I started feeling so ill , overall feeling of being poisioned , so I thought back to when I started feeling this way and thought about the change in med. From Benicar to Losartan. By then the bottom of my feet hurt to walk on , all my teeth were hurting like they were loose and going to come out . When I researched the Losartan these are rare side effects of Losartan. I stopped the Losartan and paid out of pocket to swap back to the Benicar. After a 2 weeks of that , I was not getting any better, is when I started to research the carvediol. all these symptoms are side effects of the carvediol . All though I did fine on the 12.5 mgs twice a day , 25 mgs twice a day was way to much for me . I called my Cardiologist and told him what I had found and that this could very well be side effects of these meds and he said that it was not . I told him I read it on Web MD & the Mayo Clinic and he still insist that it is very unlikely that carvediol or Losartan was causing these side effects?
I had never had a chest pain in my life , much less the arm pain , leg pain , feet pain & if my heart was fine then was is causing all this pain ? He said since my heart was fine he could not help me with the pain! He referred me to my Primary care. They agreed that all these pains were side effects of these meds but said they couldn't help since all my blood work was fine and said I need to go back to the Cardiologist since he prescribed these meds? He insisted the pains are not side effects of the Carvediolol . I am in so much pain . My primary care prescribed some muscle relaxers but I am scared to take them because there may be side effects . I just want to quit all these meds and feel normal again . Please help . I know I will need to wean off these meds but I want to just stop them now and quit taking them all . Any advice you can provide would be helpful .
I should have just paid for the Benicar out of pocket to begin with . Would have been less expensive than the $38,000.00 in Medical bills I now have ?? Goodness gracious!
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I have had 2 heart attacks and a quadruple bypass and am on 50 mg of losartan and 6.25 mg of carvedilol 6.25 twice a day = 12.5.and additionally on a blood thinner and aspirin. These meds have effects you don`t even realize. I don't feel the same as I when I was only taking vitamins with no side effects so I am working with my doctor, pharmacist and a nutritionist to reduce my meds as much as possible by replacing it with vitamins with no side effects if that will be possible and doing the actions needed like changing my diet and exercising if possible. I also do a lot of research online to get questions answered I am not sure about, so I am informed so when I see the professionals, I have the ammunition to understand and control the conversation towards my goals. my first goal was to work with my doctor to get the meds that have the least side effects, getting opinions from my nutritionist and pharmacist. Doctors don't mind changing meds if you're replacing it with another especially if you list out the side effects you're experiencing, so I would go online see what the side effects are, then look at whether this was happening to me and then again go over it with my pharmacist and talk about options, then approach my doctor with a change.I was recently given an ok by my doctor to go off pravastatin for 8 weeks only if I could take natural vitamins and make appropriate changes that kept my cholesterol down but however if after that 8 weeks its is still high I have to return to the medication. I am using this system.
Hello @cynthialoulou. First, I would just like to say welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. And second, thank you for posting such a thorough message. You don't ever need to apologize for explaining your experience, concerns, stories, or thoughts in detail.
If you are responding by email, I suggest scrolling to the bottom of this message and clicking on the VIEW & REPLY button so you will be taken to the site and can read all of the messages in their entirety.
From reading your message I can tell that you are both frustrated and concerned, and that is understandable. On Connect, we cannot give medical advice an always advise that you are always in communication with your medical provider, especially when talking about stopping, weaning, or changing medication. However, we do have many members who share similar experiences and patient knowledge, which is a valuable resource. One of the most important things you can do as a patient is advocate for your health, and if that means getting a second opinion that is certainly something a lot of our members do.
I think there are a few other discussions taking place on Connect you definitely want to check out:
- Side effects of heart medicine carvedilol joint pain and stiffness, http://mayocl.in/2nTvsB6.
-Stopping Carvedilol (Coreg): When will the effects wear off? wear off? http://mayocl.in/28YeSeN (This discussion includes a reply by a Mayo Clinic pharmacist)
@cynthialoulou (I like your username), have you considered getting a second opinion to address your side effect concerns?
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1 ReactionHi @cynthialoulou. I'm glad you came by Mayo Connect to talk with us about your concerns and frustration -- especially so because your treatment reminds me so much of mine. I have been under treatment for hypertension for over 20 years, "enjoying" the effects of over two dozen medications, most of which were offered as experimental -- Will this work? Most often, it didn't.
About 12 years ago, my new HMO adopted a policy of referring hypertension cases to a nephrologist, because so often the problems grow out of the kidneys. My first nephrologist tried for a few years to manage my blood pressure, but ultimately agreed to help me get a second opinion from another nephrologist. This second nephrologist was devoted to finding fundamental causes of hypertension, ending my long period of treatment for "essential hypertension," another name for unknown cause of high blood pressure.
This time, she engaged an endocrinologist in the tests, and between them, they found that I had an inherited kidney defect that failed to reclaim potassium removed from my blood. They found what several internists, two cardiologists, and another nephrologist didn't find. Now my BP is pretty steady -- a little high sometimes, but not higher than the 150/90 maximum that is now the standard for people over 70 (I'm 81).
I'm on 50mg of Carvedilol daily (without symptoms such as yours). I also take 40mg of Lisinopril (similar to your Benicar, which is also known as Olmesartan and is a cousin of your other medication Losartan -- both of which are drugs related to kidney functions). I also take 20mg of Amiloride, a potassium-sparing diuretic.
It's understandable that you're frustrated when you are told to go back to the cardiologist who has told you that your problems can be addressed better by your internist. Perhaps he'd help you get a second opinion from another cardiologist. Could you add a nephrologist to your medical team and ask for his/her insights on your medications and your basic problems? Perhaps you would get good advice from consulting with the experts at Mayo Clinic. We can provide contact information in that regard, if you'd like to try.
We might find others to help around here if you could share your age and your blood pressure readings with us. Give it some thought. We'll be glad to hear from you again soon.
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2 ReactionsNot sure if you tried ACE inhibitors. Some do better on those. I take Carvedilol 25MG 2X daily. I tried to discontinue Carvedilol last year but found it was the very thing that keptt th migraines under control. Had migraines for over 20 years and until I had a Quad Bypass 2 years ago and was prescribed beta blockers. My cardiologist had no idea which medication was controlling them. I di research as you have done and found beta blockers did th control for me.
I also utilize a Naturopathic Doctor who has helped me quite a bit with supplements like Butterbur for the migraines and other things like Hawthorne for strengthening my heart. I don't get the problems you remarked on, but I would recommend you see a Naturopathic Doctor to get more input.
Sorry to hear of your heart attacks. I had th squad before I had a heart attack because I was so very badly plugged up. One of th e things I use in addition to 3.25 Coreg 2X daily is Hawthorne Extract form a company named Gaia. It has truly been a Godsend in how it has helped my heart to function. I take 1/4 teaspoon 2X daily of that as well. After beginning to use the hawthorne my LA went from severe dilation to moderate dilation.
One of the reasons I stay on the Coreg is due to the migraines I endured for about 20 years prior to having my bypass. I still get the occasional migraine, however the intensity and pain is not there. In June I had 2 in one weekend which is quite unusual, but have had none since.
I have not noticed any additional joint pain. My doctor agreed with me to try to wean off the Coreg and whatta ya know I had a migraine within 2 weeks.
When I had had my bypass I noticed I had no migraines and asked my doctor which med was responsible for alleviating this problem and ...his words..."I don't know". Later I found out Coreg is used to control migraines.
My dose is also very low.
My naturopath gave me a diet plan to follow to help take my weight down to help with that awful thing called heart problems and it will probably help with my cholesterol as well even though mine is not high. It is from IFM, Integrative Functional Medicine and it is the Cardiometabolic one. I'm hoping it will help me drop some of these tubs I cart around with me.
Well, I am obviously very late with my issues...these posts are from 2017...HOWEVER....in 2009 I was in the clinical trials for Losartan. I had NO problems with that but my new PCP decided that I needed to go up to 100mg...still no problems. Enter April 28th of this year...I wake up in the middle of the night and my skin is on fire...I am full of hives. Absolutely NO explanation but I took 2 Benadryl and had my husband take me to the E.R....no one can explain my hives so after seeing me for all of 5 minutes, the ER dr comes in and tells me it is the Losartan she believes caused it. I went to see my PCP the next day and without any questions, she decides to put me on Carvedilol....smallest dose twice a day with famotidine twice a day and an Allegra once a day. I am one of those people whose body does not much like meds and I usually end up with the weird side effects. It didn't take long for my body to not like this med. Horrible back, shoulder and wrist pain....a strange feeling in my chest like heaviness and what felt like skipped heart beats. I called her and she insisted I try it for two weeks....I went back after two weeks and told her this was not working for me. So she stopped it and put me back on Losartan at a 50mg vice 100. No hives or anything, bp is ok BUT my stomach has been giving me such pain....Once the food or drink (even water) hits my stomach the pain starts...I get bloated, and my chest seems to hurt...I can't take a deep breath without my stomach hurting. Now I DO have a medium/large hiatal hernia and I know what that pain is like but this is not that. I only took a few bites of my breakfast and the pain was horrendous. I am wondering if it withdrawal from the Carvedilol?? If anyone sees this, I would appreciate any input b/c I am beside myself! Thank you.