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lisinopril

Generic Name: lisinopril (lyse IN oh pril)
Brand Names: Prinivil, Zestril

What is lisinopril?

Lisinopril is in a group of drugs called ACE inhibitors. ACE stands for angiotensin converting enzyme.

Lisinopril is used to treat high blood pressure (hypertension), congestive heart failure, and to improve survival after a heart attack.

Lisinopril may also be used for other purposes not listed in this medication guide.

What is the most important information I should know about lisinopril?

Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy. Lisinopril could cause birth defects in the baby if you take the medication during pregnancy. Use an effective form of birth control. Stop using this medication and tell your doctor right away if you become pregnant during treatment. Avoid drinking alcohol. It can further lower your blood pressure and may increase some of the side effects of lisinopril. Do not use salt substitutes or potassium supplements while taking lisinopril, unless your doctor has told you to.

Vomiting, diarrhea, or heavy sweating can cause you to become dehydrated. This can lead to very low blood pressure, electrolyte disorders, or kidney failure while you are taking lisinopril. Drink plenty of water each day while you are taking this medication.

What should I discuss with my healthcare provider before taking lisinopril?

Do not use this medication if you are allergic to lisinopril or to any other ACE inhibitor, such as benazepril (Lotensin), captopril (Capoten), fosinopril (Monopril), enalapril (Vasotec), moexipril (Univasc), perindopril (Aceon), quinapril (Accupril), ramipril (Altace), or trandolapril (Mavik).

If you have any of these other conditions, you may need a dose adjustment or special tests to safely take lisinopril:

kidney disease (or if you are on dialysis);
liver disease;
heart disease or congestive heart failure;
diabetes; or
a connective tissue disease such as Marfan syndrome, Sjogren's syndrome, lupus, scleroderma, or rheumatoid arthritis.

FDA pregnancy category D. Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are pregnant or planning a pregnancy. Lisinopril could cause birth defects in the baby if you take the medication during pregnancy. Use an effective form of birth control. Stop using this medication and tell your doctor right away if you become pregnant during treatment. It is not known whether lisinopril passes into breast milk or if it could harm a nursing baby. Do not use this medication without telling your doctor if you are breast-feeding a baby.

How should I take lisinopril?

Take this medication exactly as it was prescribed for you. Do not take the medication in larger amounts, or take it for longer than recommended by your doctor. Follow the directions on your prescription label.

Your doctor may occasionally change your dose to make sure you get the best results from this medication.

Take each dose with a full glass of water.

Lisinopril can be taken with or without food.

To be sure this medication is helping your condition, your blood pressure will need to be checked on a regular basis. Your kidney or liver function may also need to be tested. Do not miss any scheduled visits to your doctor.

If you need to have any type of surgery, tell the surgeon ahead of time that you are taking lisinopril. You may need to stop using the medicine for a short time.

If you are being treated for high blood pressure, keep using this medication even if you feel fine. High blood pressure often has no symptoms.

Store lisinopril at room temperature away from moisture and heat.

What happens if I miss a dose?

Take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and take the medicine at the next regularly scheduled time. Do not take extra medicine to make up the missed dose.

What happens if I overdose?

Seek emergency medical attention if you think you have used too much of this medicine. Overdose symptoms may include feeling extremely dizzy or light-headed, or fainting.

What should I avoid while taking lisinopril?

Avoid drinking alcohol. It can further lower your blood pressure and may increase some of the side effects of lisinopril. Do not use salt substitutes or potassium supplements while taking lisinopril, unless your doctor has told you to.

Lisinopril side effects

Get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; severe stomach pain; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat. Call your doctor at once if you have any of these serious side effects:

feeling light-headed, fainting;
urinating more or less than usual, or not at all;
fever, chills, body aches, flu symptoms;
tired feeling, muscle weakness, and pounding or uneven heartbeats;
chest pain; or
swelling, rapid weight gain.

Less serious side effects may include:

cough;
dizziness, drowsiness, headache;
depressed mood;
nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, upset stomach; or
mild skin itching or rash.

This is not a complete list of side effects and others may occur. Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088.

Lisinopril Dosing Information

Usual Adult Dose for Hypertension:

Initial dose: 10 mg orally once a day, in patients not receiving a diuretic.
Maintenance dose: 20 to 40 mg orally once a day.
Some patients appear to have a further response to 80 mg, but experience with this dose is limited.

Usual Adult Dose for Congestive Heart Failure:

Initial dose: 5 mg orally once a day (If on diuretic, the diuretic dose should be reduced).
Maintenance dose: 5 to 20 mg orally once a day.

Usual Adult Dose for Myocardial Infarction:

Initial dose: 5 mg orally (within 24 hours of the onset of acute myocardial infarction).
Subsequent doses: 5 mg orally after 24 hours.
10 mg orally after 48 hours.
Maintenance dose: 10 mg orally once a day. Dosing should continue for six weeks.
Patients with a low systolic blood pressure (<=120 mm Hg) when treatment is started or during the first 3 days after the infarct should be given a lower 2.5 mg oral dose of lisinopril. If hypotension occurs (systolic blood pressure <=100 mm Hg) a daily maintenance dose of 5 mg may be given with temporary reductions to 2.5 mg if needed. If prolonged hypotension occurs (systolic blood pressure <90 mm Hg for more than 1 hour), lisinopril should be withdrawn.

Usual Adult Dose for Diabetic Nephropathy:

Initial dose: 10 to 20 mg orally once a day.
Maintenance dose: 20 to 40 mg orally once a day.
Dosage may be titrated upward every 3 days.

Usual Geriatric Dose for Hypertension:

Initial dose: 2.5 to 5 mg orally once a day.
Maintenance dose: Dosages should be increased at 2.5 to 5 mg/day increments at 1 to 2 week intervals.
Maximum dose: 40 mg/day.

Usual Pediatric Dose for Hypertension:

Pediatric patients greater than or equal to 6 years of age:

Initial dose: 0.07 mg/kg once daily (up to 5 mg total)

Maintenance dose: Dosage should be adjusted according to blood pressure response.

Maximum dose: Doses above 0.61 mg have not been studied in pediatric patients.

What other drugs will affect lisinopril?

Before taking lisinopril, tell your doctor if you are taking any of the following drugs:

gold injections to treat arthritis;
lithium (Lithobid, Eskalith);
a potassium supplement such as K-Dur, Klor-Con;
salt substitutes that contain potassium;
insulin or diabetes medication you take by mouth;
aspirin or other NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) such as ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), diclofenac (Voltaren), etodolac (Lodine), indomethacin (Indocin), ketoprofen (Orudis), naproxen (Aleve, Naprosyn), and others; or
a diuretic (water pill).

This list is not complete and there may be other drugs that can interact with lisinopril. Tell your doctor about all your prescription and over-the-counter medications, vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and drugs prescribed by other doctors. Do not start a new medication without telling your doctor.

Where can I get more information?

Your pharmacist can provide more information about lisinopril.

Remember, keep this and all other medicines out of the reach of children, never share your medicines with others, and use this medication only for the indication prescribed.
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information provided by Cerner Multum, Inc. ('Multum') is accurate, up-to-date, and complete, but no guarantee is made to that effect. Drug information contained herein may be time sensitive. Multum information has been compiled for use by healthcare practitioners and consumers in the United States and therefore Multum does not warrant that uses outside of the United States are appropriate, unless specifically indicated otherwise. Multum's drug information does not endorse drugs, diagnose patients or recommend therapy. Multum's drug information is an informational resource designed to assist licensed healthcare practitioners in caring for their patients and/or to serve consumers viewing this service as a supplement to, and not a substitute for, the expertise, skill, knowledge and judgment of healthcare practitioners. The absence of a warning for a given drug or drug combination in no way should be construed to indicate that the drug or drug combination is safe, effective or appropriate for any given patient. Multum does not assume any responsibility for any aspect of healthcare administered with the aid of information Multum provides. The information contained herein is not intended to cover all possible uses, directions, precautions, warnings, drug interactions, allergic reactions, or adverse effects. If you have questions about the drugs you are taking, check with your doctor, nurse or pharmacist.