Q. I have been taking Benicar for hypertension for about three years. Now I have developed muscle and back pain.
When I stop the Benicar, I don’t have the pain. My other medications include estradiol, Celebrex and Nexium. My recent lab tests were normal, and Benicar controls my blood pressure well without any other side effects. What can you suggest?
A. Benicar (olmesartan) is a type of blood pressure medicine called an ARB (angiotensin receptor blocker). Other drugs in this class include Atacand, Avapro, Cozaar, Diovan, Hyzaar, Micardis and Teveten. Back pain does seem to be a possible drawback of most of the drugs in this class. Please talk with your doctor about this to see whether another type of medication might control your blood pressure without causing discomfort.
