Heart Health, Blood Pressure, Statins & ApoB Lipids — 6 Discussions & 134 Outcome Logs

Yes! That exact physiologic explanation (arteriolar vs. venular dilation) is why Lasix didn't help my mom's Amlodipine ankles, but cutting Amlodipine to 5 mg and pairing an ARB cleared them right up.

Taking my 5 mg Amlodipine in the evening rather than first thing in the morning before standing on my feet all day also reduced mild afternoon puffiness for me.

Helpful detail on measuring ankle circumference. Remember that a creatinine rise of up to roughly 30% after starting an ARB is often acceptable, but only your prescriber should judge that. If you add HCTZ later, recheck both sodium and potassium within 1-2 weeks, since thiazides can shift both.

I had a similar experience with amlodipine 10 mg to 5 mg plus losartan. Taking amlodipine in the morning made evening swelling noticeably lighter. Compression socks helped, but I only put them on after confirming with my doctor that my leg circulation was fine.

If you also have heart failure or chronic kidney disease, do not assume the swelling is only from amlodipine. Check daily morning weight and ask for BNP and urine albumin-to-creatinine ratio if swelling persists. Non-dihydropyridine blockers like diltiazem or verapamil are generally avoided in reduced ejection fraction heart failure.

My doctor cut amlodipine from 10 mg to 5 mg and added losartan 50 mg. The swelling dropped noticeably within about 3 weeks. Taking amlodipine in the morning and elevating my legs for 20 minutes after dinner also helped.

On omega-3: prescription icosapent ethyl 4 g/day cut events in REDUCE-IT, but the STRENGTH trial of another omega-3 product at 4 g/day did not. Higher-dose fish oil is also linked to more atrial fibrillation (about 2.2% vs 1.3% in STRENGTH). Confirm triglycerides first, then discuss any dose with your prescriber.

Same pattern: atorvastatin 80 gave me heavy legs. At 20 mg with ezetimibe, my LDL-C and ApoB dropped as much as before. The combination plus home BP logs also gave my doctor better data than a single LDL number.

Wrist and finger monitors are generally not recommended for routine use because position errors are large. If your upper-arm cuff and the clinic device differ by more than 10 mmHg across three paired readings, bring both devices to the visit and ask staff to check cuff fit before any dose is changed.

My arm measured 35 cm, so the standard cuff was reading about 10 points high. I switched to a large cuff and my 7-day average dropped from 142/88 to 133/84. My doctor then paired readings against the office device.

On 80 mg twice weekly, my hematocrit rose from 46% to 51% by week 12 while ApoB stayed around 70 on atorvastatin 20 mg. I draw trough labs the morning before an injection so numbers compare cleanly each time.

Useful to record the draw timing, since cypionate levels swing between injections. Many clinicians review hematocrit and escalate if it exceeds 52-54%. Home blood pressure should be taken seated after 5 minutes of rest, 2 readings each morning and evening, then averaged over 7 days before anyone adjusts amlodipine.