Olmesartan Medoxomil
Olmesartan medoxomil (Benicar) is an angiotensin II receptor blocker used to treat high blood pressure. This catalogue lists it on its own as Benicar, and combined with other blood pressure medicines in Benicar HCT, Azor and Tribenzor.
Benicar Hct
Hypertension
40mg + 12.5mg
Olmesartan medoxomil and hydrochlorothiazide tablets for high blood pressure. One part relaxes blood vessels while the other helps the body flush out excess fluid.
Key points
- In the gut, olmesartan medoxomil is quickly converted into its active form, olmesartan, before it starts working.
- After a dose, olmesartan reaches its highest blood level within one to two hours and takes around 13 hours to fall by half.
- Olmesartan medoxomil carries a boxed warning for fetal toxicity: taken later in pregnancy, it can seriously harm a developing baby.
What Olmesartan Medoxomil is used for
Olmesartan medoxomil is used for hypertension, the medical term for high blood pressure, in adults and children aged six and older, and sits among the Heart & Blood Pressure medicines in this catalogue. Lowering blood pressure with it cuts the risk of fatal and non-fatal strokes and heart attacks. It can be taken alone, as in Benicar, or alongside other blood pressure medicines, as in Benicar HCT, Azor and Tribenzor, each pairing it with a second or third active ingredient.
Pregnancy and fetal toxicity warning
In the second and third trimesters, olmesartan medoxomil’s action on the body’s blood pressure system can reduce a baby’s kidney function. The resulting drop in amniotic fluid has been linked to underdeveloped lungs and skeletal problems, and a newborn can be left with an underdeveloped skull, no urine output, low blood pressure, kidney failure or, in the worst cases, death. When pregnancy is detected, the label calls for stopping olmesartan medoxomil as soon as possible. MedlinePlus gives patients the same warning directly: olmesartan may cause death or serious injury to a baby when taken in the last six months of pregnancy.