Contraindications
There are various types of antihypertensive drugs. They include Thiazides, ACE inhibitors, ARBs, Beta-Blockers, Calcium-Channel Blockers, Loop Diuretics, among others (Ahmad et al. 11). Each of these drugs has documented contraindications that make it unsuitable for use in patients with certain physical and medical conditions (Ahmad 11). The most common contraindications are pregnancy, gout, bilateral renovascular disease, hyperkalemia, asthma, obstructive airways disease, Raynaud’s disease, heart block, and systolic heart failure.
Caution when using Antihypertensives
Caution should be taken when the patient is pregnant in the second and third trimester, as the drugs can cause injury and even death to the fetus. The administrating medical practitioner should also be aware of the full medical history of the patient (Ahmad et al. 11). Extra caution should be exercised with patients having vascular complications, brain, heart and kidney problems (Ahmad et al. 11). These are the major parts of the body affected by high blood pressure, and uninformed use of antihypertensives can result in further damage taking place.
Potential Drug Interactions
Drug interactions with either food or other medications can either reduce the effectiveness of the antihypertensive or boost its performance. High blood pressure patients receive treatment with antihypertensives for many years. The patients usually receive other therapeutic treatments and agents that might give rise to drug-drug interactions (Carlo and Alpert 439-47). As the patients get older, the number of drugs received is larger. The interaction of the additional drugs with antihypertensives needs to be established to prevent harm. The kidney function in the elderly patients is diminished. This means that the antihypertensive drugs and other drugs consumed are not eliminated optimally from the body. This leads to an increased potential for drug interactions between such agents (Carlo and Alpert 439-47). Therefore, the age of the patient should be considered and any additional therapeutic agents they are consuming noted. That information helps in guiding the medical practitioner to treat the hypertensive patient.
Work Cited
Ahmad, Nafees, et al. “Doctors’ Knowledge of Hypertension Guidelines Recommendations Reflected in their Practice.” International Journal of Hypertension 2018 (2018): 11. https://search.proquest.com/docview/2017933522/74F4A30F06914F5EPQ/1?accountid=1611
Carlo, Andrew D., and Jonathan E. Alpert. “Catastrophic Drug-Drug Interactions in Psychopharmacology.” Psychiatric Annals 46.8 (2016): 439-47. https://search.proquest.com/docview/1810369097/2E9B85BC99D64177PQ/4?accountid=1611