Amlodipine Besilate + Benazepril Hydrochloride

Indications

Hypertension

Amlodipine Besilate + Benazepril Hydrochloride is used to treat hypertension. It's a fixed combination, so it isn't meant for the first treatment a person receives for hypertension.

⚠️ Always consult a registered physician before taking any medicine.

Pharmacology

The combination of Amlodipine and Benazepril is used to treat high blood pressure. Benazepril and benazeprilat inhibit angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), as shown in human subjects and in animals. Benazepril is believed to lower blood pressure mainly by suppressing the renin-angiotensin aldosterone system, but it also has an antihypertensive effect in patients with low-renin hypertension.

Amlodipine is a dihydropyridine calcium antagonist (also called a calcium ion antagonist or slow channel blocker). It inhibits the transmembrane influx of calcium ions into vascular smooth muscle and cardiac muscle. It does this selectively, and the effect is greater on vascular smooth muscle cells than on cardiac muscle cells. Amlodipine is a peripheral arterial vasodilator. It acts directly on vascular smooth muscle, which reduces peripheral vascular resistance and so lowers blood pressure.

The rate and extent of absorption of Benazepril and Amlodipine from this capsule are not significantly different from those seen with the individual tablet formulations. After oral administration of the capsule, peak plasma concentrations of Benazepril are reached in 0.5 to 2 hours. For Amlodipine, peak plasma concentrations come 6 to 12 hours after administration, and the extent of absorption is 64% to 90%.

Over 700 patients took Benazepril/Amlodipine once daily in five double-blind, placebo-controlled studies. Blood pressure fell within 1 hour, with the greatest reductions 2 to 8 hours after dosing. The effect of a single dose lasted for 24 hours. With once-daily doses of Benazepril 10-20 mg and Amlodipine 2.5-10 mg, seated pressure (systolic/diastolic) was lower by about 10-25/6-13 mmHg at 24 hours after dosing.

Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Pregnancy categories: C in the first trimester, and D in the second and third trimesters. ACE inhibitors can cause illness and death in the unborn baby and the newborn when a pregnant woman takes them. Several dozen cases have been reported in the world literature. So if pregnancy is detected, this capsule should be stopped as soon as possible.

Only minimal amounts of unchanged Benazepril and of benazeprilat pass into the breast milk of nursing mothers treated with Benazepril. A newborn who feeds on nothing but breast milk would receive less than 0.1% of the mother's dose of Benazepril and benazeprilat. It isn't known whether Amlodipine passes into human milk. Since this information is missing, nursing should be stopped while the mother takes this capsule.

⚠️ Talk to your doctor before taking any medicine during pregnancy or while breastfeeding.

Dosage Reference

⚠️ Reference ranges from official sources only. Consult your doctor for personalized dosing.

Adults: Amlodipine works well for hypertension in once-daily doses of 2.5 to 10 mg, while Benazepril works well in doses of 10 to 80 mg. Treatment with this Amlodipine and Benazepril capsule is usually started only after a patient has not reached the desired blood pressure control with one or the other as monotherapy. It may also be started when Amlodipine therapy alone has not given adequate control without causing edema. Dose Titration Guided by Clinical Effect A patient whose blood pressure is not adequately controlled with Amlodipine (or another dihydropyridine) alone, or with Benazepril (or another ACE inhibitor) alone, may be switched to combination therapy with this capsule. All patient groups benefit from the reduction in Amlodipine-induced edema. The dose must be guided by the clinical response. Steady-state levels of Benazepril and Amlodipine are reached after approximately 2 and 7 days of dosing respectively. Some patients have their blood pressure adequately controlled with Amlodipine but get unacceptable edema. In them, combination therapy may give similar (or better) blood pressure control without the edema. Especially in nonblacks, it may be prudent to reduce the dose of Amlodipine as Benazepril is added to the regimen, to minimize the risk of an excessive response. Replacement Therapy For convenience, patients who take Amlodipine and Benazepril as separate tablets may instead take this capsule containing the same component doses. In small, elderly or hepatically impaired patients, the recommended initial dose of Amlodipine is 2.5 mg, whether it is given as monotherapy or as a component of combination therapy.

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Amlodipine Besilate + Benazepril Hydrochloride

Indications

Pharmacology

Pregnancy & Breastfeeding

Dosage Reference

Side Effects & Interactions

Side Effects

Key Interactions