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Q. I am a 49-year-old teacher and mother. I was put on atenolol 10 weeks ago for high blood pressure. I have never been so ill in my life!
After taking the atenolol I began to feel breathless, exhausted, dizzy and weak. I fainted twice and was rushed to hospital by ambulance. It turns out that this tablet had slowed down my heart so much that it stopped! The bad thing is that the hospital stopped the atenolol immediately and put me on a blood-thinning drug.
Little did I know that you should be weaned off atenolol gradually. There were times when I thought I was going to die! Others need to know they must NOT STOP taking it without medical supervision!
A. You are right that beta blocker heart and blood pressure medications such as atenolol, carvedilol, metoprolol and propranolol should never be stopped suddenly. Abrupt discontinuation has led to chest pain, irregular heart rhythms or even heart attacks.
We are surprised that your doctor prescribed atenolol as a first-line treatment for hypertension. Many experts advise that such drugs only be used if other approaches are inadequate.
Our book Best Choices From The People's Pharmacy discusses this problem in detail and offers a range of other meds and nondrug options. It is available in libraries, bookstores and online (PeoplePharmacy.com).
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I was sorting some items and came across an article that I had saved from the News and Observer on "blood pressure medicine triggers terrible cough".
I saved it because I do have some cough and sometimes gagging from Lisinopril. I have also been put on Metoprolol, later replaced by Bystolic, which cost a lot more. I also take Furosemide(lasix), Hydrochlorot and a potassium tablet.
I get extremely sleepy and sluggish, therefore I sit in my recliner more and have gained 25 lbs. in the last year.( not good for my blood pressure)
My worst problem grew worse lately, swelling legs. Fluid is collecting, legs itch horribly. Doctors seem to be at a loss as to what is wrong. I want to get off all this medicine but don't know how without a threat of stroke or heart attack. Help.
I have been put on 3 medications for blood pressure-never having had B/P issues before. After starting Tekturna 300, I started coughing half of the night and have had severe diarrhea. With the addition of Bystolic, my Asthma has become a real problem and I can hardy breathe and I wheeze frequently. Prior to this, my Asthma was well controlled. The diuretic, Furosemide, seems to cause my large joints to burn...
This is NOT fun...
Has anyone else experienced this?
Cathie L.
Keep Me posted on this drug. My mother has been on it for a long time and has similar symptoms.
I was on this medication as a secondary meds and within 10 days my legs and lungs filled with water and I felt sick all the time.
I read comments by the teacher regarding atenolol and her extreme reaction to it. My heart doctor put me on Bystolic (nebivolol tablets) in March. He gave me samples and it worked well but when I went to order it from Prescription Solutions under my medicare part D insurance I found a 3 month supply was $120.00. Since I am on social security only, I could not afford that therefore I asked my doctor to give me something else that was not so expensive.
He first chose another medication that was even more under my insurance. He then chose Atenolol 25 mg tablets. I began taking it on 4/19/11 and so far I have no side effects. The big problem with medications is the cost if you do not take a generic even though newer medications are actually better for you.
At this point, there is no generic for Bystolic (which also worked well for me). I do not know the dosage the teacher was taking so it is hard to determine whether this contributed to her reaction to the drug or not. I understand the 25 mg I am taking is a minimal dosage - more of a slight maintenance amount. My blood pressure went from a lifetime reading of 120/80 to 140/90 and I am 70 years old so my doctor wanted me to take medicine and now my pressure is back to normal. I see him every 3/4 months to monitor my progress.
Your column is wonderful and I use many of your suggestions. Thank you so much.
Point well taken BUT what is the rest of the story? Had there been no doctor follow up after start of the prescription? Did the hospital not use proper procedure when stopping the medication? This seems to be a case of a patient who did not take the time to research the medicine that was prescribed in the first place.
It is very helpful when people share about their unwanted experiences with certain drugs. It alerts me to all sorts of possible problems, which should never be ignored. The interactions of several prescribed drugs are difficult to predict.
I, too, had some coughing with Lisinapril, and was surprised when I read the description, supplied by the pharmacy with my prescription, that it was not uncommon. My coughing, however, is very limited.
As a practicing Emergency Physician, I must reply to your article on Atenolol. While in general stopping a medicine abruptly may be unwise, your statement that atenolol should NEVER be stopped abruptly is flat wrong.
I have treated numerous patients on beta blockers over the years that present in complete heart block due to the effects of the medicine (either from taking too much, taking in combination with a Calcium Channel Blocker, or from a change in their metabolism which leads to increased levels of the drug). These pts often require a temporary pacemaker and complete, abrupt cessation of the drug.
If the patient in your article truly suffered an asystolic arrest (my heart stopped), you better believe we will stop the medicine on the spot. To not do so would be malpractice. To suggest a physician do otherwise suggests some degree of ignorance about real world clinical medicine. Many things sound great in a text book, but aren't realistic in actual live patient care.
While you provide some useful information, frequently you wrongly criticize a writer's physician for something they may or may not have done. Often based only on limited information as conveyed from the patient (which is often distorted or leaves out clinically relevant information). Please think before criticizing someone when you don't have all the information, and keep providing helpful tips and remedies.
PEOPLE'S PHARMACY RESPONSE:
Dear Dr. Kevin,
Thank you so much for setting the record straight. You are of course quite right that if a patient is in heart block...as in the heart is not beating, then the beta blocker needs to be discontinued and heroic measures taken.
The person made it very clear that she was referring to never stopping a beta blocker like atenolol "without medical supervision!" That is what we were trying to reinforce.
Many people experience side effects on beta blockers and might be tempted to stop taking them on their own. That is why we emphasized the FDA's warning that abrupt discontinuation can be dangerous.
Of course this case points up the problem with drugs like atenolol. When they are used as first-line treatments for hypertension there can be problems. You noted that some people are very susceptible to serious complications. We have to wonder why this person was prescribed atenolol in the first place, but we don't have all the details.
Yipes. I have been on atenolol (75 mg.) and felodipine (10) for some years now, with furosemide for some years now and so far I haven't experienced these terrible side effects. I hope I never do!
Thirteen years ago I went into ventricular tachycardia (spelling?) after months of extreme stress. My doctor performed an ablation (unsuccessfully) and six weeks later had to repeat it. The procedure was successful but upon exiting, the instrument slipped and punctured the sac around my heart.
My doctor was able to save my life, thank God. To help my heart heal, he put me on atenolol/25mg daily. After 4 weeks he said I could stop the med but psychologically, I was terrified of coming off it for fear of the rapid heart beats again. Since the dosage was so small, he said it would probably be more helpful for me to continue than it would be to stop taking it.
I go for regular checkups and all has been well for 13 years. Although I am extremely sensitive to most meds, I have never had any problems with atenolol. Six months ago, my husband was put on it at 100mg. He became lethargic, weak, non-responsive; we lowered the dose ourselves to 50mg.
He improved somewhat but not completely, so he started taking it before going to bed rather than in the a.m. He is fine, I am glad to say. When we told the cardiologist what we had done, he said that was great, just don't stop it all at once. Our doctor feels you know your own body better than anyone else. We need to pay attention to what our bodies are saying and make sure you convey the info to your doctor.
In April of 2006, a cardiologist put me on 200mg. Atenolol daily. I was given this for AFib. I had been on Atenolol for many years with no problems.
The major increase in dosage caused me to be so weak and tired, and I was in the emergency room 18 times between the end of April & the 3rd week of May.
At that time my heart had started to stop and restart on its own.
My new Cardiologist informed me that I needed a Pacemaker which I rec'd. in 3 days after my heart stopped in the hospital. The surgery couldn't be done sooner as all of the OR's were booked solid. Needless to say my new doctor had a crash cart put in my room and He put a private Nurse on me 24/7.
I also ended up having to have an Ablation for the AFib as none of the meds would work on me. Now I never know when I am in AFib unless its real bad and then I become very sick to my stomach, weak sweating badly.
The only reason I have written this is it may help someone else who didn't
have a good doctor. My new cardiologist told me that in today's medicine we
need to know how to stand on our own two feet and put our foot down when we don't find something acceptable. In other words don't be afraid to fight if need be.
I am really surprised to hear all of the negative things about atenolol. I was diagnosed with high blood pressure when I was 36 years old, mine is hereditary. The doctor immediately put me on 50mg of atenolol daily. I have now been taking it for 16 years, with annual check ups, and no problems whatsoever. My blood pressure runs about 117/78 to 80. I think the only side effect I had was my hair got thinner, but I was lucky and had a lot to start with, so that was not necessarily a bad thing. Along with helping my blood pressure, I also quit having migraine headaches when I was put on atenolol. I think if you get the dosage right it can be a great medication.
my husband had a irregular heart beat and they put him on this medication he said the medication made him feel weird and sick he stopped taking this medication without drs. consent. He says he feels a lot better since he stopped taking it. I am afraid that something could happen to him does anyone else have an irregular heart beat and have also stopped taken this medication? if so what are some of the risks for not taking the medicine?
People's Pharmacy response:
Please have your husband get in touch with his doctor, explain that he couldn't tolerate the medicine, and ask about controlling the irregular heart rhythm with a different drug or treatment. Just stopping is not safe.
I have Vasovagal Syncope and I am taking atenolol 50 mg. twice a day. I am 5'8" and weigh about 115. This medicine makes me extremely drowsy and I can hardly stay awake during the day. I think it's because of my small size. I've been on atenolol for several months now and I haven't noticed the medicine helping me at all. I decided I'd stop taking the medicine because I'm sick of being too tired to enjoy being awake! However, I'm nervous that stopping the medicine will make me sick. I don't want to talk to my doctor because I'm afraid he'll up my dosage.. any advice?
I was on atenolol 50 for 4 years I was so sick I didn't want to live any longer and I told my Dr so he took me off of it and I used a small amount for about a week now I feel great after I had back surgery my pulse was beating fast again so now I'm on metoprolol 25mg it seems to be working ok. At first I was tired a lot but now my energy has come back I'm 65 and doing great. grace
My question is can you ABRUPTLY stop atenalol if you switch to a different beta blocker.
I have high bp and my doctor tried various drugs each causing side effects that were nasty. Meteporolol gave me hot flashes in the face, Bystolic caused trouble sleeping, Norvasc, Diovan, Exforge all caused anxiety with hot and cold body parts. Another common one caused a tickle in the throat leading to constant coughing.
We finally settled on Amlodipine Besylate, hydroclorothaizide, atenolol with occasional clonidine (if I feel a BP spike). When I started getting anxiety problems on entering and leaving the sleep state (I would shake, sort like a vibration) I was prescribed klonopin and Remeron. That kept me stable for a year.
My main remaining complaint was PVCs which I can feel and sometimes hear (pulse is heard in left ear - annoying) which sounds like a skipped beat.
They did Holter test, nuke stress test, echo tests, etc. all showed nothing serious. (50 pvcs and 15 pacs in 24hrs - but that was a "good" day so the holter test never revealed my occasional pvc clusters). Then the pvc's started getting worse. It's the clusters, 2 or 3 in a few seconds, sometimes followed by rapid heartbeat for a few minutes.
My cardiologist then said maybe an older beta blocker might work. So, I switched (abruptly) to acebutolol. I was on this for 5 days and it increased my sitting heart rate from 50 to nearly 60 and it did seem there were fewer pvcs. My BP was up slightly too.
Unfortunately, all the sleep (going to and waking up) anxiety started to return. After 5 days I went back to Atenolol and the anxiety slowed, but the pvcs were frequent.
What I don't know is this: Were my anxiety attacks the result of stopping atenolol, or were they caused by the new beta blocker acebutolol? Should I have tapered off the one as I ramped up the other - i.e. have a time where I took a little of both?
I am a 41yr old woman who had a hysterectomy 5 yrs ago. Last November I started having "Cardiac" symptoms along with a fever. Those symptoms included racing heart rate, pounding heart, feeling tired easily and often feeling anxious (with no triggers for anxiety). My blood pressure did go up to a whopping 120/84 when this was happening (regular BP was 117/78).
My doctor put me through the litany of tests starting with chest xray to determine if I had swelling around the heart. I didn't so then it was the Stress EKG, blood work, Holter monitor etc. In every test I was told my heart was in excellent condition. The stress test they actually commented that I had no previous issues and performed better than many (surprise to me). When it came to the 96 hrs of the Holter Monitor they found a couple of instances where I had an isolated PVC and a few times where my heart rate increased significantly.
Since there where no real cardiac issues found the Dr. blanket diagnosed my issue as anxiety and prescribed me to 5mg of Bistolic which reduced my symptoms. Like others on here the insurance didn't pay for it so a three month supply was too costly and they changed me to 50mg of Atenolol. I have now been on it for about 5 months. In the first month and half I gained well over 15 lbs. It took several weeks for the medication to rid me of the symptoms. My BP is now down to 108/70 regularly.
I have been reading up on menopause and am actually beginning to feel that my symptoms are due to that and not due to an anxiety problem. Based on my history of BP readings it definitely isn't due to that. I am thinking about reducing my dosage to 25mg / day for several weeks then dropping it further to every other day for a few more before quitting. I won't be going back to the same Dr. again for treatment and haven't found a new Dr. to assist me with this. Is this too fast to ween me off or pretty reasonable?
Hello, I have been reading all the great comments.... On December 21, 2011 I went into the hospital ER feeling chest pains, Tachycardia, Dizziness, numbness and very short of breath. I have been in out of A-fib many times since then. I have been cardiac-converted 6 times and put on Atenolol, Amiodrone, and Meteporolol. I feel very weak and still get a racing heart HR of 145-160... I have been admitted 8 times in the last 4 months... I am very frustrated... I have not been able to return to work for almost 4 months now and have lost my job over all of this.
My problem is all my tests, including an Angiogram have came back clean the Doctors tell me that my "Plumbing Of the heart is good" they have told me that I am not a risk for a heart attack... But they also say that the Electrical part of my heart has gone haywire on me but they feel they can control it with meds. MY QUESTION IS WHY WHAT ELSE CAN THEY DO TO FIX IT IT IF THE MEDS ARE NOT WORKING??
Anyone here ever stopped taking atenolol abruptly? I am on this medication and it has made me constantly sick - I just wanna drop it completely.
My atenolol was discontinued yesterday after 20 years. My renal hypertension was diagnosed at the University of Pennsylvania Hosp following a kidney infarct.
I have found the several articles I have read online today to be very reassuring since today I have been experiencing fluctuations in my BP and HR. I was of the belief I did not need the medication for some time. I was on 2 medications for hypertension and my physician discontinued one about 5 years ago and I have been doing fine; in regards to my BP.
My circumstances leading to the diag of renal hypertension are unique BUT the side effects I experienced taking atenolol and the response to discontinuing atenolol are more common than I ever realized; dizziness, cold hands and feet,etc. Two days ago my BP dropped dangerously low and while I don't believe I actually fainted, I am fortunate I was sitting at my kitchen table on my laptop. I experienced a surreal feeling of loosing touch with my surroundings. I was as scared as I have ever been in 69 years including the spontaneous dissection of a blood vessel to my kidney 20 years ago which took 5 days in the hospital to discover.
I used the automatic BP cuff and couldn't believe how low it registered; 50/20.
I am writing this to thank those (professional and others) who have addressed the issues related to atenolol they have either experienced or observed/studied in their lives. I feel optimistic and relieved I am finally not taking atenolol.
I had a heart attack 2 months ago. Although my arteries look good my body threw a clot. I had a stent put in my heart. I've experienced a-fib just about 1 to 2 times every two weeks. I was on lisinopril first (an ace inhibitor) because of bradycardia. I have always had low bp and hr. Well as it stands I had horrible side effects and was back in the hospital 9 days after my heart attack. My cardiologist put me on bystolic that was good for 3 days then I was having a-fibs again. Now I am on atenolol. I am only on it for 3 days but I am depressed, a little confused, my hands are swollen and numb and my a-fib is no better. Prior to the heart attack I had 1 incident of a-fib and I believe it was stress (physical, chemical and emotional)induced. I want to stop taking all of these drugs and let my body work on its own again.