First off, Lotrel 5/10 is not a "new medicine". It is a combination ace inhibitor and calcium channel blocker (thus the 5/10 part of the prescription) used to treat high blood pressure.

See Link: www.walgreens.com/library/finddrug/druginfo1.jhtml?id=12382[/url]

I don't understand why you would be put on a combination drug at this time. Have you tried ACE inhibitors before? How about calcium channel blockers? If you have side effects from this combination drug, you won't know if you are getting it from the ACE or the ccb. You should try one or the other if you haven't tried either of them before.

I am taking a ccb called Tiazac and get great results with minimum of side effects. I tried straight Lotrel and thought I was going to cough up a lung. Other people do fine with the ACE but have side effects from ccbs.

Ask your doctor if you can start with just plain Lotrel first and see what happens with side effects and blood pressure.

I have been on Lotrel 10/20 for about a year now. When I was diagnosed I was at around 150/90. Lotrel did a good job at lowering my Diastolic but I needed to add a water pill to bring my Systolic below 120. I suffer a slight cough from time to time, but it has not been a big thing for me to deal with.

I took lotrel a few years ago after trying verapamil a calcium channel blocker the ccb made unable to exercise, I was taking avapro at the time too, but the ccb seemed to make me unable to hardly walk let alone hike trails without having to stop to catch my breath all the time, or sit down because I felt like I would collapse if I didn't.

but then the lotrel did the same thing, I thought it was the ccb, but now that I take an ace inhibitor lisinopril 10 mg I am finding myself doing the same thing getting way out of breath for what used to be a breeze and having to take frequent breaks, the altace didn't seem to do that but it is more expensive but if this med doesn't stop interfereing with my exercise I will probably have to go back to altace or try something different.

or maybe the doctor can advise me on another ace inhibitor that will not make me get so out of breath, I adjusted to the beta blocker torprol 100 mg adn was able to walk/jog with little fatigue compared with lisinopril and altace.

RR