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Ask
the Pharmacist By Ron and Marla Chapleau |
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Q: Last week you mentioned a number of causes of leg swelling. Could my medicine also be causing it? A: One of the challenges in writing this column is that many topics are too complex to cover in their entirety given the finite amount of space available for this column. But you are absolutely correct, a number of prescription drugs have been implicated in causing swelling of the legs (also known as peripheral edema). Among the culprits are blood pressure drugs, in particular the class known as Calcium Channel Blockers which includes Norvasc (amlodipine), Plendil (felodipine) and Adalat (nifedipine). Peripheral edema is in fact their most common side effect and it may occur in up to one-third of patients. It usually occurs in both legs, can become quite uncomfortable and is not a result of fluid overload meaning that adding a diuretic (“water pill”) is unlikely to help. The situation can be resolved by lowering the dose (which may not decrease the drug's blood-pressure-lowering effect all that much), switching to another type of drug (including diltiazem and verapami -, two Calcium Channel Blockers that don’t tend to cause this) or adding a second drug to your therapy such as an angiotension receptor blocker (Micardis, Avapro, etc.) or an angiotension complex enzyme inhibitor (peridopril, ramipril, etc.). Other types of drugs implicated in leg-swelling include the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (Advil/ibuprofen, Aleeve/naprosyn, celebrex, etc.), hormone replacement therapy (estrogen), the diabetic drugs Actos (pioglitazone) and Avandia (rosiglitazone), anticonvulsants/peripheral neuropathy pain killers such as gabapentin and Lyrica, and the dopamine agonists (pramipexole, ropinirole) which are used in Parkinson’s and restless leg syndrome.
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There are different
strategies to minimize or eliminate the leg swelling with all of
these medications. So, if you are suffering from it, you need to tell
one of your health care professionals so it can be rectified as well
as to rule out other causes such as those mentioned in last week's
column. For more information about this or any other health-related questions, contact the pharmacists at Gordon Pharmasave, Your Health and Wellness Destination Scrolling stops when you move your mouse inside the scroll area. You can click on the ads for more
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