HCTZ Inderal and polycethemia??? - High & Low Blood Pressure Message Board

pete0303 · 04-08-2005, 08:29 AM

I took inderal la and HCTZ for nearly a year and developed thick blood, polyecthemia, does anyone know if that could be caused by the high blood pressure meds also i have High cholesterol. things seem to be resolving since i began diovan last month, Also does any one know if a reaction to these medications can cause adrenal problems? Thanks in advance

Lenin · 04-08-2005, 09:59 AM

pete,

You are of course referring to polycythemia. If you have primary PC than the condition is due to an inherited trait in your stem cells. It is a dangerous condition that requires diligent treatment to prevent clots and hemorrhage.
But you CAN develop SECONDARY POLYCTHEMIA by use of thiazides which, in essence concentrate ALL your blood components by removing water. I would think the second is completely reversible.
Do you know which you have?

I think any adrenal problems are the cause of BP rather than being the effect of any drugs to treat it.

GOUT is a complication of PC which ALSO can be caused by diuretics; which is how I got mine!

Are you getting decent BP control with just Diovan?

(You might want to donate blood 2 to 4 times a year to dump some of those red cells!)

pete0303 · 04-08-2005, 10:10 AM

Lenin thank you, I don't know what caused my blood to thicken but since stopping inderal and the hctz my blood work is improving,I so far have had great results with diovan, My GP also prescribed atenolol but i havent taken it since the diovan seems to be doing the trick, I have been on diovan for 2 months.I was hospitilized with hbp spike in february had a heart cath wich revealed no blockages, the doctor there swithed me to diavan Does thickened blood cause high blood pressure?

mgraylorn · 04-08-2005, 11:26 AM

Inderal is a beta blocker. I took Toprol XL for a short time and my blood pressure started spiking while I took that drug. Its taken months for the lingering effects of Toprol to go away after I stopped taking it. So I would say, based on my personal experience only, that beta blockers can affect the adrenal system.

If you are getting good results with the diovan, I'd say don't take the atenolol just for high blood pressure. If you have some other medical condition atenolol is supposed to help, that might be another story.

zuzu8 · 04-08-2005, 02:51 PM

Quote:

Does thickened blood cause high blood pressure?

Pete- The answer to the above question is yes, it is possible.

With PC , since there is an increase blood volume and viscosity (thickness), complications obviously can can occur, one of which is indeed hypertension.

But in your case, you had high blood pressure before being diagnosed with PC.
As lenin said, thiazides could be a problem and it's interesting that you are improving now that you're off them.

How is you PC being treated?

zuzu xx