Enalapril - un inhibiteur de l'ECA

About enalapril

Enalapril belongs to a class of medicines called angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. You may have been prescribed it to reduce high blood pressure (hypertension), or to prevent (or treat) heart failure. Heart failure is a condition where your heart does not work as well as it should.

ACE inhibitors like enalapril prevent your body from creating a hormone known as angiotensin II. They do this by blocking (inhibiting) a chemical called angiotensin-converting enzyme. This widens your blood vessels and helps to reduce the amount of water put back into your blood by your kidneys. These actions help to decrease blood pressure. Although people with high blood pressure often do not feel unwell, if left untreated, high blood pressure can harm the heart and damage blood vessels, leading to a heart attack or stroke. Enalapril can be used on its own or alongside other medicines which reduce blood pressure. A combination brand called Innozide® (which contains enalapril with another medicine called hydrochlorothiazide) can help to reduce the total number of tablets people with high blood pressure need to take each day.

In heart failure, there can be too much circulating fluid in your blood vessels because your heart is not working as efficiently as it once did. Enalapril helps to reduce this. It also appears to have a protective effect on the heart and slows the progression of the heart failure.

Before taking enalapril

Some medicines are not suitable for people with certain conditions, and sometimes a medicine can only be used if extra care is taken. For these reasons, before you start taking enalapril it is important that your doctor knows:

• Si vous êtes enceinte ou si vous allaitez.

• Si vous avez des problèmes de fonctionnement des reins ou du foie.

• Si vous manquez de liquide dans le corps (déshydratation) - par exemple, si vous avez eu la diarrhée ou si vous avez été malade très récemment.

• Si l'on vous a dit que vous aviez une accumulation de dépôts graisseux sur les parois de vos artères, une maladie appelée athérosclérose.

• Si vous souffrez d'un type particulier de mauvaise circulation appelé maladie artérielle périphérique.

• Si vous souffrez d'une maladie vasculaire du collagène - il s'agit de maladies telles que le lupus érythémateux disséminé (LED) et la sclérodermie.

• Si l'on vous a dit que vous souffrez d'une maladie du muscle cardiaque (cardiomyopathie) ou d'un rétrécissement du principal vaisseau sanguin partant du cœur (sténose aortique).

• Si vous avez déjà eu une réaction de gonflement du visage, de la langue ou de la gorge (œdème de Quincke).

• Si vous suivez un traitement de désensibilisation pour vous protéger contre les piqûres d'abeilles et de guêpes.

• Si vous suivez un traitement par dialyse ou un traitement visant à éliminer le cholestérol de votre sang à l'aide d'une machine (aphérèse des LDL).

• Si vous prenez d'autres médicaments. Cela inclut tous les médicaments que vous prenez et qui sont disponibles sans ordonnance, ainsi que les médicaments à base de plantes et les médicaments complémentaires.

• If you have ever had an allergic or unusual reaction to any other ACE inhibitor (such as captopril, ramipril or perindopril), or to any other medicine.

How to take enalapril

• Before you start the treatment, read the manufacturer's printed information leaflet from inside the pack. It will give you more information about enalapril and will provide you with a full list of side-effects which you could experience from taking it.

• Prenez les comprimés en suivant scrupuleusement les indications de votre médecin.

• If you are being treated for high blood pressure: enalapril is taken once a day. You will be advised to take your very first dose at bedtime. This is because you can feel quite dizzy when you first start taking it. After the first dose, you can generally take enalapril at a time of day you find easy to remember. For most people this will be in the morning.

• If you are being treated for heart failure: your doctor will give you a small once-daily dose to begin with, and then your dose will be increased gradually over a few weeks. Once the dose has been increased, enalapril is commonly taken as two doses a day, one taken in the morning and the other in the evening. Increasing your dose slowly like this helps to avoid unwanted side-effects, such as dizziness.

• Try to take your doses at the same time(s) of day each day as this will help you to remember to take your doses regularly. You can take enalapril tablets either with or without food. It is best to swallow the tablet with a drink of water.

• There are several strengths of enalapril tablet. Your doctor will prescribe the strength which is suitable for your condition. Each time you collect a new supply, check to make sure the tablets are the strength that you are expecting.

• If you forget to take a dose at your usual time, take it as soon as you remember (unless it is nearly time for your next dose, in which case do not take the forgotten dose but take the next dose when it is due). Do not take two doses together to make up for a missed dose.

Tirer le meilleur parti de votre traitement

• Essayez de vous rendre régulièrement à vos rendez-vous avec votre médecin. Cela permet de suivre l'évolution de votre état de santé. Votre médecin vous demandera de faire des analyses de sang de temps en temps pour vérifier que vos reins fonctionnent bien.

• Il est très important que vous suiviez les conseils de votre médecin en matière d'alimentation et de mode de vie. Il peut s'agir de conseils concernant une alimentation saine, le fait de ne pas fumer et de faire de l'exercice régulièrement.

• If you buy any medicines, check with a pharmacist that they are suitable to take with enalapril. This is because some medicines (such as anti-inflammatory painkillers and indigestion remedies) can interfere with your treatment.

• It is likely that your doctor will advise that you do not use salt substitutes while you are taking enalapril. These products have a high content of potassium which could be harmful for you.

• If you drink alcohol, ask your doctor for advice about drinking alcohol while you are on enalapril. Alcoholic drinks can make you feel light-headed or dizzy, and they may not be advisable for you.

• If you have diabetes you may need to check your blood glucose more frequently, as the tablets can lower the levels of sugar in your blood. Your doctor will advise you about this.

• If you are having an operation or dental treatment, tell the person carrying out the treatment that you are taking enalapril. This is because some anaesthetics could cause your blood pressure to drop too low.

• Treatment with enalapril is often long-term unless you experience an adverse effect. Continue to take the tablets unless you are advised otherwise.

Si vous prenez également de l'hydrochlorothiazide en association avec ce médicament

• Des études ont suggéré que la prise de doses élevées d'hydrochlorothiazide pendant de longues périodes peut augmenter le risque de certains cancers de la peau.

• Informez votre médecin si vous avez déjà été traité pour un cancer de la peau.

• Informez votre médecin de tout grain de beauté nouveau ou modifié ou de toute marque inquiétante sur votre peau.

• Utilisez un écran solaire en cas de forte exposition au soleil. Ne pas utiliser de banc solaire.

Can enalapril cause problems?

Along with their useful effects, most medicines can cause unwanted side-effects although not everyone experiences them. The table below contains some of the more common ones associated with enalapril. The best place to find a full list of the side-effects which can be associated with your medicine, is from the manufacturer's printed information leaflet supplied with the medicine. Alternatively, you can find an example of a manufacturer's information leaflet in the reference section below. Speak with your doctor or pharmacist if any of the following continue or become troublesome.

Important: if you experience any of the following potentially serious symptoms, stop taking enalapril and contact your doctor for advice straightaway:

• Difficulté à respirer ou gonflement du visage, de la bouche, de la langue ou de la gorge. Ce sont les signes d'une réaction allergique.

• Any yellowing of your skin or the whites of your eyes. These may be signs of a liver problem called jaundice, which is a rare side-effect.

• Une éruption cutanée grave.

Si vous ressentez d'autres symptômes qui pourraient être dus aux comprimés, demandez conseil à votre médecin ou à votre pharmacien.

How to store enalapril

• Conservez tous les médicaments hors de la portée et de la vue des enfants.

• Conserver dans un endroit frais et sec, à l'abri de la chaleur et de la lumière directes.

Informations importantes sur tous les médicaments