i have been on Amlodipine for over two months, for the last 3 weeks my ankles and feet have started swelling up, and my stomach is also bloated. I have read on here that serveral countries have stopped prescribing them and this has really frightened me, and also they are cheap which makes me wonder what is in them. My GP always offers the cheap first, and I no I will get nowhere asking for a change in my prescription. I am really thinking of just stopping them,
No country that I am aware of has banned it. That's internet rumours.has stopped prescribing it. Internet rumours. They are not cheap, but a first line defence against HBP. Your GP is duty bound to change it if it is causing you problems.
One of the problems is swelling, however many calcium channel blockers cause thi and usually if it is a proble, a diuretic like spironolactone will also be prescribed. There are other medicines out there, I swapped from amlodipine to felodipine because of the side effects.
RHGB is correct there has been a number of rumours running around for several years now - it is NOT banned - it has been around for decades and in the majority of patients works very well, one of the side effects is swollen joints and is listed in the data sheet inside the packet. If you are not 'happy' because of the swollen joints go back to your GP/MD and get them to prescribe another BP med but on no account stop taking BP meds. For the record; I have been on Amlodipine 5 mg for 16 years without problems and my BP has remained steady.
Hope this helps, John
It is NOT a rumor that amlodipine has been banned in Holland.....
Ann - a post was removed by the Moderator only a week or so ago because it is a rumour! Don't believe all you read even on the internet - there is a lot of rubbish out there.
I could be pedantic and say there is not a country called Holland it's called The Nederlands. Holland is one of the providences of The Nederlands and part of the County of Lincolnshire in the UK!!
I was on Amlodipine for about 2 months. Progressively I developed chest pain, stomaches, and extreme tinnitus - I couldn't stand it. As my entire family has taken Lisiniprol HTCZ - I asked to switch - my doctor finally agreed.
On the Amlodipine - my blood pressure averaged around 140/90. On Lisiniprol HTCZ it averages around 120/80. I am so happy no more horrible ringing in the ears nor the chest pain. This works very well for my entire family - however I hear people complain of cough - I've yet to experience - different things work for different people.
Good luck - don't stop taking them without consulting your doctor.
Never stop your BP meds without your PC doctor involved. If you're not comfortable with your PC find someone else. Many BP meds, I'm sure there is a good one for you, but they all have their side effects.
Dear April I only took Amlodipine for a few days legs and feet swollen unable to sleep cramp in both legs went back to surgury nurse changed meds to Felodipine put on over a stone in two weeks authuritus made much worse BP dropped too low had a massive fall ended up covered in bruises and have an MCL badly torn ligament in my knee I am now in constant pain. I can only assume this pills are cheaper than previous pills and we are being fobbed off with them. I have stopped taking BP meds and my blood pressure has remained stable. Buy yourself a BP monitor and make a daily record of your BP it is only when you are in your own enviroment that you get a true reading I have white coat syndrome I have only got to walk through the surgery door and I feel my heart rate go up. regars Jacky
i had my doctor change mine to another one and all my swellings have gone down
april78308...you must have read many complaints in this forum about the Amlodipine, but a VERY common side effect of this drug is swelling. I wouldn't particularly believe that it's a cheap medication. "Amlodipine" is the generic name, whereas "Norvasc" is the brand name. You didn't say what strengh of the Amlodipine you are taking. When I started on it, I was prescribed 5mgs...but my bp was spiking in the afternoon, so my Dr. DOUBLED the dose to 10mgs. My feet/ankles & lower legs were very swollen, & he had no problem in his mind of taking me off the drug& prescribing something else. Anything I read about bp medications says the doubling the dose isn't the answer; that it simply increases the risk of side effects. A relative is on 5mg Amlodipine & her bp was spiking in the afternoon. Her Dr. directed her to split the tablet in half...take half in the morning, then half in the afternoon. That did the trick for her. Not everyone has an easy time on Amlodipine, but there are some that it doesn't agree with.
To be quite honest here..not because you've asked a question about the Amlodipine, but I will; not be making any more comments about Amlodipine in this forum. It is exhausting now..with a lot of the same questions coming forth.
Good luck to you.
Yes it is a rumour, Ann. Amlodipine has NOT been banned in The Netherlands (or Holland - which is a perfectly acceptable alternative name for the country). I read Dutch and did a lot of internet research on the topic when this came up a couple of months ago. It is still being widely prescribed in that country.
I also researched it in French and Italian, and also found no evidence of a ban. So that means it's still being prescribed in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Monaco, Italy, Switzerland etc. That exhausted my language competencies, but EU countries all tend to follow the same rules on drug authorisations.
What I did find were many references to the fact that it's come off patent in most European countries over the past few years so can now be prescribed in generic form.
This isn't in any way an endorsement of amlodipine on my part. I've never taken it and neither has anyone I know, though my mother took a different CCB for 15 years with very few side-effects. It's just an attempt to set the record straight.
Hi April, saw your heading Swollen ankles and am in the same situation.
taking the dreaded pills for over a year, increased weight of almost one and a half stone !! Plus all the joys of side effects. With only one kidney ( other one lost to cancer ) I am always considerate what mess I take. Having read that this pill has been banned in various countries I have now started on Indapamide, apparently a new BP variation with built in diuretic. Amazing results for me, know I have lost weight, plus the swelling of legs, ankles, stomach has decreased. Some days the ankles were so bad I could hardly walk. On holiday at present and the sun always makes you feel better, BUT, I know these new tablets certainly are helping me, not sure of BP as I have not got a monitor with me, well as I said I am away at present.
Hope this helps you and you can gain some comfort of knowing that there is life after Amilodipine.
Hi Jackie
Thanks for your reply. I have visited my GP who has agreed to change me to losartin. I started these on Saturday and my feet are nearly normal. Downside I am peeing for England, but I would rather have this side effect. Don't know if there are any changes to my BP yet, as I haven't had time to take new readings.
Good luck on your new tablets
Thank you Lily.
'Having read that this pill has been banned in various countries'
Jackie, please don't re-post rumours - they are not banned, certainly not in Europe or the US. This has come up time and time again and please read lily65668 and my post above.
Hi Jackie, Sorry to hear you've been having so many problems, and glad that you've now found something that helps without giving you awful side-effects.
I've never taken amlodipine myself, but know it disagrees with many people. However, just one correction for the sake of good order: amlodipine has not been banned in any European countries. This was a rumour that was circulating in parts of the hypertension community - including these forums - a few months ago, but it's not true. It probably arose from a misreading of a Dutch site that announced it was coming off patent so can now be manufactured in generic form.
I hope you continue to be helped by indapamide.
Thank you for pointing that out. I did read through some of the other remarks after answering April and noticed the relevant comments.
I do not normally look up drugs but a friend told me to go to a forum for info on certain drugs , the USA can really frighten you, best to stick to good old UK sites I think
Hi Jackie, You don't have to go onto US sites to hear rumours - the entire internet is full of them!
As a general rule, any site whose domain name contains the mention of org plus the initials of a country, or gov, is reliable and won't entertain rumours. Webmd, Mayo Clinic and another site simply called drugs (with the relevant internet bits around the name) are also good. I'm having to be careful here, as this site will automatically delete posts containing anything that looks like an internet address!
Another excellent site covering research on all kinds of medical topics is the NCBI. They can be a bit technical, but it's often worth skipping to the Conclusions section at the end for a straight answer.
I keep reading about the banning of this drug in other countries, after taking it I feel it should be banned as it didn't lower my blood pressure and gave me horrible side effects. i'd be curious as to a poll of people taking this - how many it actually helps and why that was the drug of choice for my doctor to prescribe - don't doctors keep up on this sort of thing - ? It's certainly upsetting when you have to tell the doctor, I won't take this one - give me that one - and you have to fight with him about it 
First: it's NOT banned in other countries
Second: it's a proven med for lowering BP. Has been around for decades and in the majority of patients it works very well. Unfortunately, for the minority that are prescribed do experience some side effects some minor and some more severe. This happens for the vast majority of meds - we are all different (thank goodness!) At least we have the option to have prescribed another similar drug unlike those of us on steroids that have considerably more side effects - so consider yourself very lucky you have a choice.