I have been fiddling with dosages looking for a good monotherapy and as a result have spent the last 2 months without any of the Cozaar (losartan) that I had been taking for several years.
The last month before I quit I was getting the ACE cough, which is rare but not unheard of with ARB's.
So I decided to try my FINAL combo of 50 mg. losartan + 25 mg. HCTZ (instead of the 50 mg. I've taken since the time of Julius Caesar). Saturday morning was my first dose of losartan and by Saturday night my right knee hurt so bad that I had to get up and down from chairs using one leg. Sunday I took another Cozaar and Sunday was MURDER. I checked the PDR and LO: myositis, myalgia, KNEE PAIN!
I took only the HCTZ today (back to 50 mg.)...and by mid afternoon the pain is gone?
Has ANYONE experienced any problems like this with an ARB? If I am the only one, then I really must assume it was a quirk.
Of course a good test is continue my good workouts this week and take another Cozaar on Saturday and see what happens.
My sneaking suspicion is that my body is beginning to resist the drug that I;ve been ok with for a long time...both with the cough and now the pain.
I have knee trouble from playing catcher too much, but i can usually live with it it was terrible on benicar
also, while on benicar my knees would occasionally just give out & I would fall down, that had happened occasionally before but was frequent while taking benicar, havent had that problem since i quit taking it
lenin - talked to my mother last night, she has been on diovan for as long as she can remember, and after i asked her she decided that yes, her knee pain got worse sometime after she started taking it, she thought it was old age
Thanks for the useful info mojo.
I'll let you know what happens when I take it next weekend again. (Too much to do this week to drag a painful leg around with me!)
Weekends might not be a good test, if you don't do your regular workouts then. Could it be that your workouts stress your knee and when you don't limber up by working it on the weekend it gets painful? Just a thought.
I'm GOOD and usually do my same workout routine on the weekend (because my gym is in my building) even if the crowds are tedious.
But I'll try to compare apples with apples. I have a TON of stockpiled Cozaar I was saving for my dotage and it would break my heart if they all had to go in the garbage, so I will give the med EVERY benefit of the doubt.
I might even tolerate the nagging but slight cough but the pain last weekend was almost crippling...SEARING pain just above the kneecap...probably inflammation of whatever tendons attatch the quadriceps to the patella. I even ate 6 Alleve to try to abate the pain.
Today the knee feels like it never happened and yesterday I did 40 proud minutes on the LifeCycler at a heartrate of 130-140
At least I have the thiazide which does a WONDERFUL job at lowering my BP.
Lenin,
I have been on Benicar for almost a year. I had moderate arthritis when I started takin the ARB and it got unbearable after about 2 months. I had to start Celebrex just to be able to do my daily exercise. Not only did the original arthriris get worse but it spread to other joints. I have noticed lately that it seems to be getting better (or maybe I'm just getting used to it) I don't want to give up Benicar because it controls my BP better than anything else I have tried.
Cass
I'm so glad I read these posts this morning because I thought I was just getting "old." I'm 49 and have been taking bp meds on and off since I was 23.
I have been on just about all of them and then stopped them because of the side effects. My bp is at the point now where I can't be off medication unless I want it to damage my heart.
I am currently on Diovan 80mg, Metoprolol 50mg (2xday) Inspra 25mg and I started getting these weird pains in my legs and had myself convinced I needed to go to the doctor to make sure there are no blood clots but after reading the posts this morning I think it's the medication causing the pains. My knees are aching and I thought it was because I was just getting older and because I sit a lot.
I was on Hyzaar for years and then was switched over to Cozaar and I didn't notice the aches but as soon as I was put on Diovan and Metoprolol my aches and pains started.
Aslo, if anyone is on a beta-blocker and you need a CT scan or MRI using the contrast please make sure they are aware of it before the test is done. I learned the hard way that the beta-blockers will cause an allergic reaction to the contrast. Thankfully it was just a bad case of hives but it could have been worse.
Dianne
Last edited by dianne12315; 03-09-2005 at 06:05 AM.
Gee, a shame you had to go on Celebrex which is now involved in heart attacks to let you take a medication to lower your BP to help your heart.
"Catch'a-22" here!
I sure won't go on daily Alleve to be able to take the Cozaar if push comes to shove.
I took myself off the celebrex and I don't take anything now. The pain seems to have mellowed a bit. At least I can do my walking exercise without to much pain. Strength training is another story.
Cass
I'm so glad I read these posts this morning because I thought I was just getting "old." I'm 49 and have been taking bp meds on and off since I was 23.
I have been on just about all of them and then stopped them because of the side effects. My bp is at the point now where I can't be off medication unless I want it to damage my heart.
I am currently on Diovan 80mg, Metoprolol 50mg (2xday) Inspra 25mg and I started getting these weird pains in my legs and had myself convinced I needed to go to the doctor to make sure there are no blood clots but after reading the posts this morning I think it's the medication causing the pains. My knees are aching and I thought it was because I was just getting older and because I sit a lot.
I was on Hyzaar for years and then was switched over to Cozaar and I didn't notice the aches but as soon as I was put on Diovan and Metoprolol my aches and pains started.
Aslo, if anyone is on a beta-blocker and you need a CT scan or MRI using the contrast please make sure they are aware of it before the test is done. I learned the hard way that the beta-blockers will cause an allergic reaction to the contrast. Thankfully it was just a bad case of hives but it could have been worse.
Dianne
Hi Dianne,
When I startd Benicar I had arthtritis in my knees, a couple of months later I had it in my back, neck, hand, and heel. The heel pain was the worst.
Cass, (Sandra Dianne) Cassiebel is my beloved little shih tzu
I never thought of it before but my fingers have become very stiff in the mornings and again I thought it was just my age and these things were just starting to show up. However now I'm not so sure it's my body. I think it's what the medication is doing to my body. I had heel pain a few years ago but it was due to the ligament being too short and after exercises and a few months of pain medication it went away. I hope it never comes back because when your feet hurt so does everything else.
Also I can't seem to lose these extra pounds I have put on since my medication was changed either. I'm convinced it's the medication. I never had a problem losing weight before either.
I take it that your middle name is Dianne and your mother spelled it like mine did. It's a pretty name and it's too bad that it's hardly used anymore. I think I might be one of a few people who actually like their name.
Shih Tzu's are so cute. My sister wanted to get one after her poodle died but decided to get another cat instead. I think she's sorry now but might get one in the summer.
At 9:30 AM I took 50 mg. Cozaar and 50 mg. HCTZ. I immediately went to the gym and did some light work including a 30 minute cardio on the LifeCycler (stationary bike)...I've been doing it every second day for a year so it's not extraordinary and I usually do 40 minutes.
Let's see what develops...so far so good (and the steam and sauna were nice) Fingers are crossed.
Since I have been on Avapro I get lousy backaches and also pain in the upper part of my legs. Before Avapro I was on Altace, and that totally sucked. It did nothing for my BP, but it gave me a wicked cough and diarrhea.
Most days I can ignore the back pain until I have to vacuum. Before I could do at least 4 rooms before sitting down, now I have to sit down for awhile after 2 rooms. Geez, nothing like having to stretch a 2 hr. job into a 3 hr. job.
Sometimes blood pressure medications can actually solve problems. Since taking the CCB Tiazac, my occasional headaches have been disappeared, and I've recently learned that Tiazac is actually prescribed for headaches. Actually, I take Tiazac and Avapro, and it could be that one fends off to some extent the side effects of the other.
Day one on the Cozaar re-introduction. Back sore and stiff with arising but that's so frequent for me as to be like breathing...my first trip is usually to a powerful vibrator for lower back every morning.
Knees not PERFECT but ok.
Another dose soon.
(I'm pleased so far, with crossed fingers and toes.)
On the occasional good effects of an ARB, since I have gout (completely controlled) I LOVE the fact that the ARB's are weak uricosurics (you pee more uric acid out!)
