Lisinopril and ankles

I was on Lisinopril for about 3 1/2 months. I coughed the entire time-day & night. I coughed until I vomited almost daily. I had diarrhea, severe muscle cramps in my sides and toes. The coughing was HORRIBLE and I really thougth it was going to kill me. I saw a new doctor who told me Lisinopril is notorious for causing coughs. My first doctor told me to take Mucinex. He is a moron. Thank God I changed doctors. It took an additional 16-17 days for the cough to subside once I stopped taking Lisinopril. Now I am taking Norvasc 10MG. It makes my ankles swell. Not thrilled with it but I could not cough another day.

I have been on 5mg of Lisinopril for about four years now. I have the cough everyone talks about. It can start as a dry cough and come from nowhere but often I know it is coming as I can hear the rattle in my chest. If I have just eaten and it comes on I often end up being sick. I have this awful clear (totally colorless and odorless) mucus that comes up. It is horrible, it is so hard to cough to clear it without being sick and I make horrid noises. If anyone is around me they all look at me with horrified expressions on their faces. My Bp is now under control since I now also take a water tablet too, but I still get horrid fluid retention around my ankles and on top of my feet and have to go to doctors now as the pain on top of my left foot is stopping me from walking - the only exercise I do, and what keeps me alive I guess) and the cough is not occasionally anymore, I get it daily. I don't cough all of the time, and it mostly gets me in the morning when I awake, but I know it is a side effect and getting worse. I guess I am putting off going to doc because I hate the thought of having o come of the drug and try something else as my BP is reading a lovely 123/79 most of the time, which is great!

I was prescribed Lisinopril on 2/2008 to protect my liver, after taking I started with a tickle in my throat that would turn into one of those coughs that would make you cry which would occur at least 3 or 4 times a day. Then I would have pain in my neck, arms around my ankles and knee joints. Now I have developed a cough that is uncontrollable and happen all during the day and night I could not get any sleep, have bag under my eyes. I went to see my doctor and he told me to take robitussin DM, which did not help. The cough was so bad, until it made my chest and stomach hurt. It made me feel as if I had to throw up. I went to see my doctor today to tell her that I was not going to take the LISINOPRIL anymore, but when I told her about my cough, she said it was from the LISINOPRIL and not to take it any more.

I forgot to ask her was any of my other vital organ affect by this drug.

I was recently prescribed 10 mg lisinopril for borderline hypertension. the first 2 days I felt better and my blood pressure went from 160/106 to 124/76 in 3 days. But also on day 3, I have developed a hoarseness and I feel extremely tired adn depressed. The calves of my legs feel like they weigh 50 lbs each, they feel heavy. I don't think I will take anymore of it and contact my doctor for a change in medication. I am glad I came across this website.

I was just prescribed lisinopril a few weeks ago, for HBP, my pressure was always low but, I recently had a malfunctioned defibrillator change and my BP went very high, so the MD put me on lisinopril. I have been on it for about a month now, but the only symptoms I have been getting is severe fatigue,sleeping a lot and very thirsty. Are some of the symptoms putting on weight, I don't want that, and I did or have not had a bad cough. But sleeping is bad and very tired all the time. Should I ask my MD to change my meds? I did have 2 heart attacks and two by pass surgeries, l4 years ago one in 93 and one in 99. Then my heart weakened and I came down with arrhythmias after passing out. They inserted a pacemaker/def. thanks to medtronic after the pacemaker and def. were recalled I had to get another one, but if this drug is causing everyone a lot of problems I don't want to take it. I do get up a lot during the night (constantly going to the bathroom) due to thirst and am constantly tired I am 51,and came down with this disease (it is a childhood disease and have had it since I was l9), but it is a scary one, heart problems. They never ran in my family. Any suggestions would be appreciated. I am going to get my blood taken on Tuesday to see if this Lisipril is working or not. Thanks for anyone help, I really need it on this new drug. Thank you.

Julie

I am a 50 year old female and started taking 10 mg of Lisinopril about 2 months ago for HBP. I also take Lovastatin with no problems for about 2 years. Within a few weeks, I starting having the dry, hacking cough along with the tickle in the throat. I also starting itching over various parts of my body. I starting urinating a lot especially at night. Between the coughing and going to the bathroom, I was not getting much sleep. I was tired all the time and was not able to concentrate very well. A few weeks ago, I noticed my skin was getting little red spots. It finally dawned on me that all these symptoms occurred after I started taking the Lisinopril! I went online and found this site. I can't believe they would put a drug like this on the market! I quit taking the medicine about 4 days ago and my cough is starting to decrease, my itching is almost gone and I am not urinating as much. I have an appointment with my doctor in a few days and will tell him that I will NOT be taking this medicine anymore. I will find another way to decrease my blood pressure without medicine. SOMEBODY NEEDS TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS DRUG!!!!!

I have been on Lisinopril for about 30 days, I have developed a pain in my left side that I have not determined the cause. I realized last night that the pain started about the time I started taking this drug. I am taking myself off the drug today to see if the pain subsides, I am calling the Doc this morning. Has anyone else experienced these symptons?

I must have an angel watching over me, because for the life of me I do not know how I came across this website. I have been taking lisinopril 20mg with HCTZ12.5 for about 2 years. I have felt like I was going to have a heart attach, the bloating is driving me nuts, tired because lack of sleep and some times just plain can't sleep at night, leg cramps and now my vision seems to be getting worse. I have had all the symptoms at one time or another. I am going to be 57 years old in October and I am about 30-35 over weight. But I do walk and ride my bike and do other exercises. We just did a very small job landscaping and I could hardly walk or lift my arms for about 4 days. Muscles were so sore. And I didn't do that much to have that my muscles ache that badly. On both sides of my ankles are like little fat pockets, the doctor said it was not water retention, I now have swelling under my eyes. ??? Thank you to everyone for being posting. I need to talk to my doctor and get off this stuff. I recently forgot to take my medication on a 3 day vacation and when I got home I feeling pretty darn good, as soon as I started taking the meds for 2 or so days I was back to feeling that yuky feeling

Hi again,
Since I wrote last (about 3 days ago) The swelling in my feet and ankles has almost gone. The hacking cough has stopped. The pins and needles have subsided and the sweating sleeps have disappeared. Oh, yes.....and the headaches and palpitations have vanished. I feel 100% better since I stopped topping up on Lisinipril....I might even go and join a circus!
Thanks for letting me air my views on the trauma Lisinopril caused me.

Stay safe all and steer clear of Lisinipril.

My husband went on Lisinopril in Feb 07, his bp went down and was regulated his headaches almost left but then he had sinus surgery in mar or apr. He has now developed muscle twitching and now the "doctors" say he has Motor Neuron Disease.... I refuse to believe after reading everyone's side affects that this 41 year old with no family history of this other than 1/2 siblings with high bp that he has this disease. He has experienced neck stiffness like it is broken (had MRI) no broken bones or slipped disc, he has had the chills, hw has vision blurred issues, heaviness in his legs, left side of his body more prominent than the right, he has crazy dreams and thoughts, he feels like he is dying, he doesn't however have any coughs, he has anxiety which they put him on anti depressant. After reading others comment I researched this med, it was developed by venom in a poisonous Brazilian snake. My husband as a child would get bitten by wasps, fire ants etc.. they would rush him to ER for meds and he used to take shots if stung, swells up like a balloon. So in my theory this med has the snake bite affects and I believe this has caused him to have this neuron disease but I can't prove it. His muscles twitch all the time. I believe this drug has been slowly poisoning him to a eventually paralysis to death. I have begged the doctor to take him off. He has but now he is on Atenolol, which is not much better but has no snake venom or ACE inhibitors. Please people email me. I am desperate we need to band together.
Thanks you Joann

I started taking Lisinopril in October of last year and at first I thought it was great. It reduced my blood pressure significantly and stopped my migraines and stopped my ankles and hands swelling. However, in January of this year I started to experience very painful, itchy swollen eyelids and a general feeling of itichiness all over my face and neck. As I have suffered from eczema on and off for years, though never on my face, I put it down to that. The itching and redness does respond to steroid creams and antihistamines a little and it clears up for a while, but then is back with a vengance a few days later. It's very embarrassing and I have to stop wearing make-up when it's bad. I've only just realised after six months of this that it could be the Lisinopril. I've also had a bit of a dry cough but not enough to really bother me. However, whilst making breakfast one morning this week I nearly fainted so now after reading everyone's experiences on this website I really think I need to visit my doctor and have my medication changed. Thanks to everyone who has contributed to this site - it's really helped me to know about the side effects of Lisinopril.

I've experianced a number of the side effects mentioned in these posts. Mostly the miserable cough and fatigue. My question is joint pain. I've been on Lisinopril about 6 weeks and shortly after beginning I started getting pain in my right hip. Can hardly walk in the morning. Could be coincedence but..........anybody else?

Had severe dizziness laying me up for 2-3 days and needed help walking. I am not sure this is the effects of Lisinopril. I have bad ankles with lots of pain when i walk, back aches and stopped having my hair shampoos at the Salon due to laying so flat with my head lower than my body and would get dizzy and need help to get to the hairdressers chair. I am a diabetic and have tingling in my feet and legs. I am having severe leg and foot cramps at night. could this be the side effects of Lisinopril?

I HAVE SEVERE SWELLING OF MY ANKLES AND EXPERIENCE NAUSEA. I FEEL BLOUTED ALL THE TIME.

I HAVE EXPERIENCED SWELLING OF MY ANKLES AND FEET AND A BAD SORE THROUT.

Started taking lisinopril in mid Feb 06. Three weeks in and I've been experiencing unusual joint and muscle pain. I called my doctor, mentioning my symptoms and he seemed surprised, saying that the cough was the only side effect he was aware of. I have joint pain in my fingers, wrists, ankles, knees, elbows, shoulders, and muscle pain in the forearms, biceps and thighs. I read the email from the guy who felt "as if I am 75 years old", and I can empathize. I feel as though I'd just returned to the gym after a years absence and overdid it! Trouble is, it 's there every day and seems to be getting worse.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Have been on a low dose of Lisinopril for a month. Dr. told me about cough side effects, but nothing else. I have had severe joint pain and muscle pain, sometimes in my hips, my thighs, ankles, wrists. Always a different place. Sometimes it's hard to walk. I have been feeling like I'm crazy! Also have fatigue and depression. I didn't think about it being the medicine until I loggged on here just to see if anyone has had a similar experience. Then I looked in the PDR, and there it is-not common, but it does happen! Thank you all for sharing. Also, a dry cough is developing after a month!
Has anyone had the cough develop slowlyi

I started on Lisinopril 3 weeks ago and have had increasing problems ever since. First, I got the cough, which I was warned about by my pharmacist and my doctor. I also started having sudden, sharp pains in the toes of my right foot, like I was having an electric shock. I also had several severe leg cramps. Then my right knee started hurting and I had not injured it in any way. I have also had very severe burning eyes, that I atributed to allergies. My ankles also stay very swollen, something that has never happened before. Within the last week I have experienced extreme shortness of breath, tiredness beyond belief, a feeling that I could lay down whereever I am at the moment and go to sleep. I had no energy whatsoever, zero. last night I went to bed at 6:00pm and got up this morning at 9:30 am that's 15-1/2 hours! That signaled the end of my taking Lisinopril, I am not taking any other medication, so that has to be the culprit.
It is now 1:20 in the afternoon and as I did not take the lisinopril this morning, I feel much,much better as far as my energy level is concerned. We will have to wait and see if any other side effects appear or disappear, I'll let you know.

I am going to print out a lot of the comments on this forum and take them to my doctor and pharmacist.

I started taking Lisinopril 4 weeks ago to control my high blood pressure. About a week later, I began to itch all over my body, but mostly on my forearms, armpits, and ankles/feet. It leaves my skin red with bumps and welts. I didn't even connect it with the Lisinopril until it just dawned on me one night. My MD said most likely I am allergic to Lisinopril and any other ACE Inhibitors, so I've stopped the Lisinopril and will begin to take Cozaar instead. I've been off Lisinopril for a week and I'm still itching. Hopefully it will go away in a few days.

I had been put on Lisinopril 10mg in January 2005 for high blood pressure. The does was increased to 20mg in February. In March I began to experience severe bone pains throughout my body and developed a dry night time cough. There was a period where it appeared to be a viral infection but the pains continued. My life has been on hold due the pains. From waking up and having my wrists and ankles hurt badly to shooting pains all over. The pain appears in different body parts each week. My cardiologist and regular md did not think the lisinopril was causing this. After a series of blood work ups very high liver enzymes appeared (alk, alt, and ast) I was sent for a liver ultrasound and to a GI doctor. The bone pain is crippling and has lead me to have to take pain medications which cause other issues. The GI doctor believes I may be in the 1% of people who are effected this way. I would rather live with high blood pressure than experience the pains I have. I await more test results and have independently stopped taking Lisinopril as of today. After researching ace inhibitors, I think the Lisinopril is the culprit. I believe this medication is toxic to me.

Well I'm glad I'm not alone here.I had a light stroke a year ago and the doc's got me on LisinoprilHCTZ,micardis,clonidine,and atenelol.I have aproblem with adema(swelling around the ankles and such).My Lisinopril was 20/25 mg.He told me to double my intake to get rid of this adema.But isnt lisinopril one of the meds that causes the swelling?So I have severe adema,a muscle soreness that wont go away,severe indigestion, a dry cough, and I feel weak all the time, with no energy. Why dont these doctors look up the side effects of these meds and prescribe responsibly

I started taking Lisinopril at the end of August 2004. I have had this pain in my lower right abdomen off and on for about the 7 months since I started taking this medicine. I have a kidney disease, so I dismissed it as the pains of that I have had since I was 19. I read that it can severely injure a fetus, so what troubles me, if it can cause injury including death to an unborn child, what is it doing to my reproductive organs? And is this pain in my abdomen a sign of damage being done?

I was originally on Norvasc, but had experienced severe swelling in my ankles, so I was switched to Lisinopril and is when my nightmare began. My most recent symptoms include a headache right behind my right eye. It comes and goes, and is like a quick stabbing pain. I was told it was more than likely my allergies, which I am on allegra D for. In reading all these other side effects everyone experiences, I am really scared if I should be taking this. If all these problems are from this medication, what will coming off of it do? I have not experienced the cough as bad as others seemed to have gotten, but I have not been able to get rid of a cold I had gotten in late November, or at least so I thought. It seemed to linger on. I have also been severely fatigued as of late, and no matter how much sleep I receive, I always wake up drained, and lifeless. I do consume higher doses of calcium, and vitamin c, which from what I read, seems to prevent some of the other effects. I feel I have enough illness in my life, that I should not have to deal with other symptoms, or live with the aches and pains, in order to keep my blood pressure down. There has to be another alternative. I am also taking Toprol XL, which I have not experienced any bad symptoms, except for fatigue. I agree with a previous post that dr's are only out to reap the benefits of prescribing these pills that they do not spend any time considering the after effects. I have to be on this medication for the rest of my life, and I do not feel I should have to deal with all these after effects I was never warned about. Only swelling.

i would like to hear from anyone that has had a photo reaction to lisinopril. i have been taking it along with norvasc.

i have pigmentation on my ankles and feet.

Thank you for this forum, now I know for a fact that stuff is like arsenic. I was on Lisinopril (Zestril) for 6 months. I felt awful. SEVERE indigestion, deep chest pain on the left side , also joint pain in wrist and ankles, headache and difficulty in swallowing-like a lump in throat and always a nagging cough. Even worse than physical effects was the depression and confused feeling. So I Went back to doctor, he gave me an EKG which came out fine. So he said keep taking Zestil and added Zantac and Zoloft!! So here I was on the three Z's ..(was on Zestil 6 months but only took the Zantac and Zoloft for three weeks)and I WAS Zoning out. I felt worse, so stopped everything (been 3 months clean of these poisons) and symptoms gone almost immediately, although it took about a month to feel really good. Still have joint pain at times, but much better. I am not taking BP medication at all. I am now scared to go to doctor. I started taking high doses of calcium-magnesium softgels and drink two cups of warm milk with pure blackstrap molasses in it and taking Quercin C and a product of liquid potassium called KM..I do NOT have high blood pressure now..I am 47 yr. old woman and BP measurements twice daily for last two months have been approx. 127-135/78-84. This drug is dangerous, I am convinced... I really suffered when taking it..be careful folks.