Description

The name of your medicine is APO-Lercanidipine. It contains the active ingredient, lercanidipine (as lercanidipine hydrochloride).

Lercanidipine belongs to a group of medicines called dihydropyridine calcium channel blockers.

Lercanidipine helps lower high blood pressure, otherwise known as hypertension.

This medicine is available only with a doctor’s prescription.

How it works

This medicine works by relaxing some of the blood vessels in the body and reducing resistance to the flow of blood through the blood vessels.

Everyone has blood pressure. This pressure helps get your blood all around your body. Your blood pressure may be different at different times of the day, depending on how busy or worried you are. If your blood pressure stays higher than is needed, even when you are calm and relaxed, you have hypertension (high blood pressure).

There are usually no symptoms of hypertension. The only way of knowing that you have hypertension is to have your blood pressure checked on a regular basis. If high blood pressure is not treated it can lead to serious health problems. You may feel fine and have no symptoms, but hypertension can cause stroke, heart disease and kidney failure.

There is no evidence that this medicine is addictive.

Use in children

This medicine should not be used in children.

Before you take this medicine

When you must not take it

Do not take this medicine if:

You have or have had any of the following:

• severe liver or kidney disease.
• taking another medicine called cyclosporine.
• You are hypersensitive to, or have had an allergic reaction to, lercanidipine or any of the ingredients listed at the end of this leaflet.
  Symptoms of an allergic reaction may include: cough, shortness of breath, wheezing or difficulty breathing; swelling of the face, lips, tongue, throat or other parts of the body; rash, itching or hives on the skin; fainting; or hay fever-like symptoms.
  If you think you are having an allergic reaction, do not take any more of the medicine and contact your doctor immediately or go to the Accident and Emergency department at the nearest hospital.
• The expiry date (EXP) printed on the pack has passed.
• The packaging is torn, shows signs of tampering or it does not look quite right.

Before you start to take it

Before you start taking this medicine, tell your doctor if:

1. You have allergies to:

• any other medicines
• any other substances, such as foods, preservatives or dyes.

2. You have or have had any medical conditions, especially the following:

• liver or kidney disease or you are on dialysis
• other heart conditions such as: heart disease, uncontrolled heart failure, an obstruction to the flow of blood from the heart (aortic stenosis), unstable angina (chest pain or tightness at rest or progressively increasing) or you have had a heart attack (myocardial infarction) one month ago or less and/or you require a pacemaker.
• taking other drugs for high blood pressure, such as beta-blockers, diuretics, ACE-inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor antagonists.

3. You are currently pregnant or plan to become pregnant. Do not take this medicine whilst pregnant until you and your doctor have discussed the risks and benefits involved.
4. You are currently breastfeeding or you plan to breast-feed. Do not take this medicine whilst breastfeeding until you and your doctor have discussed the risks and benefits involved.
5. You are planning to have surgery or on an anaesthetic.
6. You are currently receiving or are planning to receive dental treatment.
7. You are taking or are planning to take any other medicines. This includes vitamins and supplements that are available from your pharmacy, supermarket or health food shop.

Taking other medicines

Some medicines may interact with lercanidipine. These include:

• cyclosporine
• ritonavir
• ketoconazole
• itraconazole
• erythromycin
• fluoxetine
• cimetidine
• phenytoin
• carbamazepine
• rifampicin
• amiodarone
• quinidine
• digoxin
• simvastatin
• metoprolol
• propranolol

If you are taking any of these you may need a different dose or you may need to take different medicines.

Other medicines not listed above may also interact with this medicine.

Possible side effects

Tell your doctor as soon as possible if you do not feel well while you are taking lercanidipine or if you have any questions or concerns.

Do not be alarmed by the following lists of side effects. You may not experience any of them. All medicines can have side effects. Sometimes they are serious but most of the time they are not.

Tell your doctor if you notice any of the following:

• flushing
• swelling of the ankles, feet or lower legs
• headache
• dizziness
• gastrointestinal disturbances such as heartburn, nausea, abdominal pain or diarrhoea
• muscle weakness
• fatigue or sleepiness.

If you experience any of the following, stop taking your medicine and contact your doctor immediately or go to the Accident and Emergency department at your nearest hospital.

These are very serious side effects and are usually rare. You may need urgent medical attention or hospitalisation:

• angina (chest pain or tightness)
• increased heart beat or heart palpitations
• difficulty breathing

Other side effects not listed above may occur in some patients.

Allergic reactions

If you think you are having an allergic reaction to lercanidipine, tell your doctor immediately or go to the Accident and Emergency department at your nearest hospital.

Symptoms of an allergic reaction may include some or all of the following:

• cough, shortness of breath, wheezing or difficulty breathing.
• swelling of the face, lips, tongue, or other parts of the body
• rash, itching or hives on the skin
• fainting
• hayfever-like symptoms.
  

  Storage and disposal

  Storage

  Keep your medicine in the original packaging until it is time to take them. If you take your medicine out of the original packaging, it may not keep well.

  Keep your medicine in a cool dry place where the temperature will stay below 30°C.

  Do not store your medicine, or any other medicine, in the bathroom or near a sink. Do not leave it on a window sill or in the car. Heat and dampness can destroy some medicines.

  Keep this medicine where children cannot reach it. A locked cupboard at least one-and-a-half metres above the ground is a good place to store medicines.

  Disposal

  If your doctor tells you to stop taking this medicine or they have passed their expiry date, your pharmacist can dispose of the remaining medicine safely.

  Ingredients

  Each tablet contains 10 mg or 20 mg of lercanidipine (as lercanidipine hydrochloride) as the active ingredient.

  It also contains the following inactive ingredients:

  • Cellulose – microcrystalline
  • lactose monohydrate
  • croscarmellose sodium
  • butylated hydroxytoluene
  • magnesium stearate
  • hypromellose
  • macrogol 8000
  • titanium dioxide
  • purified talc
  • yellow iron oxide (10 mg only)
  • red iron oxide (20 mg only).

  This medicine is gluten-free, sucrose-free, tartrazine-free and free of other azo dyes.