Important Safety Information
About Atacand® (candesartan cilexetil)
Atacand® (candesartan cilexetil) is a type of medicine called an Angiotensin Receptor Blocker (ARB). Atacand is used to treat patients with high blood pressure and patients with symptomatic heart failure and reduced heart pump function. Only your doctor can determine if Atacand is right for you.
Atacand® (candesartan cilexetil) is a prescription medication used to treat high blood pressure. Atacand can be used alone or with other blood pressure-lowering medications.
Atacand® (candesartan cilexetil) is also used to treat patients with Class II, III, or IV heart failure (as defined by the New York Heart Association classification) when they have symptoms of heart failure and have reduced heart pump function. Atacand reduced the risk of death from heart disease and the need for hospitalization due to heart failure. Atacand can provide these benefits when used together with other heart medicines, including another class of drugs known as ACE inhibitors.
Pregnancy warning: When used during months 4 through 9 of pregnancy, Atacand can cause injury and even death to the unborn baby. If you are taking Atacand and discover that you are pregnant, tell your doctor right away so that Atacand can be stopped as soon as possible and other appropriate treatment decisions can be made. You should not take Atacand if you are pregnant or are planning to become pregnant. Please ask your doctor for information on Atacand that is written for health care professionals and look under Warnings and Precautions, Fetal/Neonatal Morbidity and Mortality.
Important Product and Safety Information About Atacand in High Blood Pressure
Atacand® (candesartan cilexetil) is a prescription medication used to treat high blood pressure. Atacand can be used alone or with other blood pressure-lowering medications. Do not take Atacand tablets if you have an allergy to Atacand or any of the ingredients. Symptoms of abnormally low blood pressure, such as dizziness, lightheadedness, feeling faint, or weakness, which can be severe, may occur if you take Atacand and are dehydrated (have abnormally low body fluids) or are salt depleted (low levels of salt in the blood). Dehydration or salt depletion may occur as a result of using diuretics (sometimes called water pills) or from other causes such as low fluid intake, vomiting, diarrhea, excess sweating, or poor kidney function.
Before you start taking Atacand, your doctor should correct any dehydration and/or salt depletion, or should start you on Atacand under close supervision. Your doctor may start Atacand at a lower-than-usual dose.
Make sure your doctor knows if you are taking lithium, because Atacand can increase the amount of lithium in your blood.
The most common side effects with Atacand are back pain, dizziness, cold symptoms, sore throat and runny or stuffy nose. If you experience these or any other side effects, consult your doctor.
Important Product and Safety Information About Atacand in Heart Failure
Atacand® (candesartan cilexetil) is a prescription medicine that is used to treat patients with Class II, III, or IV heart failure (as defined by the New York Heart Association classification) when they have symptoms of heart failure and have reduced heart pump function. Atacand reduced the risk of death from heart disease and the need for hospitalization due to heart failure. Atacand can provide these benefits when used together with other heart medicines, including another class of drugs known as ACE inhibitors.
Some heart failure patients taking Atacand have developed abnormally low blood pressure, abnormal kidney function, and/or increased potassium levels in the blood. Your doctor will check your blood pressure before and during therapy with Atacand. Your doctor will do blood tests to check your kidney function and potassium level when the medication is started, when doses are increased, and periodically during your treatment.
Make sure your doctor knows if you are taking lithium because Atacand can increase the amount of lithium in your blood.
Side effects can occur due to the way Atacand works and the general condition of the patient. In a large, 4-year study that compared Atacand with placebo (sugar pill) for the treatment of heart failure, 21.0% of patients stopped therapy due to side effects compared to 16.1% of patients taking placebo. If you experience any side effects, consult your doctor.
If you would like additional information regarding AstraZeneca products, please contact the Information Center at AstraZeneca in the US at 1-800-236-9933, Monday through Friday 8 AM – 7 PM ET, excluding holidays.
Please see full Prescribing Information for Atacand and Atacand HCT, including Boxed Warning regarding use in pregnancy.