We are constantly amazed by the number of reports we have received about ACEi (angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors) and cough. These are among the most widely prescribed blood pressure drugs in the world and include drugs such as captopril, benazepril, enalapril, fosinopril, lisinopril, perindopril, quinapril and ramipril. If you see PRIL in the name, there is a good chance you are dealing with an ACE inhibitor.
Every medical student in the world is taught that a common complication of such drugs is a cough. A 1970 JAMA editorial stated unequivocally:
“When a physician prescribes a drug, he has an obligation to warn the patient about the drug’s potential for causing adverse reactions, especially the more serious ones. For example, the possibility of drowsiness resulting from an antihistamine can be serious for an automobile driver…”
Perhaps many doctors do not consider cough a serious adverse reaction. They would be wrong, as this reader reveals.
Q. My husband has been taking lisinopril for years now to control hypertension. We never associated his persistent non-stop coughing with this drug until today.
He passed out a number of times today from the cough. When he lost consciousness from coughing non-stop, he hit his head and put a hole in the wall. I was very worried.
I Googled “passing out from coughing” and found your website. What an eye-opener! He is going to stop taking lisinopril and will try to maintain his blood pressure in alternative ways.
A. No one should ever stop taking medication without first checking with the prescriber. That said, we are disappointed that no one warned your husband that lisinopril and similar ACE inhibitor drugs (benazepril, enalapril, ramipril, etc.) commonly trigger an uncontrollable cough.
We have heard from many people who have thrown up or wet their pants because of an overwhelming cough caused by an ACE inhibitor. But passing out and falling is far worse. To learn more about life-threatening side effects from such drugs please check out this link.
There are many other medicines (and nondrug approaches) that could control hypertension without causing a cough. Your husband should ask his health care provider for an alternate treatment.
Share your own story about ACE inhibitor blood pressure medicines below and please vote at the top of this article.
