Losartan

Losartan belongs to a group of drugs called angiotensin-II receptor antagonists. This type of medication blocks particular hormone receptors in the body, stopping the hormone angiotensin II from acting on your blood vessels. As a result, taking losartan helps relax your blood vessels and improves the blood flow through your body.

Losartan is prescription-only blood pressure medication. It's usually prescribed to patients when other hypertension drugs, such as ACE inhibitors, do not have the effect that’s wanted, or if you have side effects from other medication. In addition to its common use as hypertension medication, losartan is sometimes prescribed to diabetes patients to stop the kidneys being damaged. It’s also used as a preventative treatment in patients with heart problems, to reduce the risk of stroke. Sometimes losartan is used as a treatment for chronic heart failure.

There are a few reasons why taking losartan might not be safe to be prescribed for you(contraindications). These include:

• pregnancy
• breastfeeding
• liver disease
• having an allergy to losartan of any of the ingredients
• if you’ve ever suffered from swelling of the face, throat, or tongue
• kidney problems
• heart problems
• increased potassium levels in your blood
• hyperaldosteronism (a syndrome affecting your adrenal gland)
• any recent illnesses you’ve had that involved vomiting and diarrhoea

Losartan tablets are not available as an over-the-counter treatment. You can only take losartan if your GP has provided you with a prescription. Before you take losartan, it’s important that you tell your doctor about your medical history. Please make sure you let your doctor know about any treatment you’ve recently received.

Losartan tablets are not available as an over-the-counter treatment. You should only take losartan if your GP has provided you with a prescription. Before you take losartan, it’s important that you talk to your doctor about any medical issues you’ve had in the past Please ensure you let your doctor know about any treatment you have recently received. There are various contraindications to taking losartan, including pregnancy, breastfeeding and liver disease. If you’re allergic to losartan or any of the ingredients, you must not take the tablets.

Please make sure you tell your GP if you’ve ever suffered from an allergic reaction that causes your face, throat, or tongue to swell after taking any kind of medication.

If you have kidney problems, heart disease, or liver disease, your doctor will also think about whether this medication is safe for you to use and might keep a closer eye on how you it’s affecting you.

ZAVA offers a convenient service for repeat prescriptions. You will need to fill in a short questionnaire, which our doctor uses to assess, whether we can provide you with losartan tablets. ZAVA only issues repeat prescriptions for losartan, saving you a trip to the GP practice to pick up your prescription.

But you still need to see your GP for regular check-ups. Your GP needs to monitor your blood pressure closely when you first start taking the medication to make sure your treatment is effective. After that you should have a checkup, including a blood test, at least once a year.

From time to time, it may be necessary to adjust your medication and dosage, so it’s important that you visit your local surgery on a regular basis. ZAVA can provide repeat prescriptions only to patients who have been taking losartan for at least three months and whose blood pressure is under control.

Like most medicines, losartan can interact with other types of medication. Taking other drugs at the same time can lower or increase the effectiveness of losartan and lead to severe side effects. Interactions can occur when taking antidepressants or antipsychotic drugs, lithium, certain types of anti-inflammatory painkillers as well as high-dose diuretics. Losartan tablets contain potassium and should therefore not be combined with potassium supplements or other medications containing potassium. Your GP will tell you which treatments you can take while being treated with losartan.

Certain mild side effects such as dizziness commonly occur in patients who take losartan, especially during the first few days of treatment. Severe side effects are rare. However, if you experience facial swellings or an itchy rash you may be allergic to losartan. This would mean that it’s important to stop treatment immediately. Please seek medical help if you notice signs of allergy, experience palpitations, jaundice, anaemia or are having trouble passing urine. Sudden abdominal pain or back pain can be a sign of an inflammation of the pancreas, so please make sure you see a doctor as soon as possible, should these symptoms occur. The same applies, if your urine changes colour or you’re suffering from muscle pains.

• Headache and feeling drowsy
• Throwing up (vomiting) and stomach problems
• Insomnia
• Being short of breath
• Digestive problems, or constipation
• Stomach (abdominal) pain
• Cough
• Diarrhoea

Rare side effects can include numbness and fainting, migraine and flu symptoms. Please read the patient information leaflet for more information about all possible risks and side effects.