Monopril HCT

Monopril HCT is a prescription medication used to treat high blood pressure. It is a single product containing 2 medications: fosinopril and hydrochlorothiazide. Fosinopril belongs to a group of drugs called angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. Fosinopril works by blocking the ACE enzyme, which helps blood vessels to relax and lowers blood pressure. Hydrochlorothiazide belongs to a group of drugs called thiazide diuretics, which work by stopping reabsorption of salt into your body. This prevents fluid from building up in the body.

This medication comes in tablet form and is typically given once daily with or without food.

Common side effects of Monopril HCT include headache, cough, and upper respiratory infections. 

Monopril HCT can also cause tiredness (fatigue) and dizziness. Do not drive or operate heavy machinery until you know how Monopril HCT affects you.

This brand is no longer available, but the generic, fosinopril and hydrochlorothiazide, is available. 

Monopril HCT is a prescription medication used to treat high blood pressure.

This medication may be prescribed for other uses. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information. 

Take this medication exactly as prescribed by your doctor. Follow the directions on your prescription label carefully.

The dose your doctor recommends may be based on the following:

• your blood pressure
• previous medications used and the doses tried
• how you respond to this medication
• your other medical conditions

The dosing of Monopril HCT is based off its two components: fosinopril and hydrochlorothiazide. Fosinopril is a successful treatment of high blood pressure in once-daily doses of 10–80 mg, while hydrochlorothiazide is successful in doses of 12.5–50 mg per day.  

WARNING: FETAL TOXICITY 

• When pregnancy is detected, discontinue Monopril HCT as soon as possible. 
• Drugs that act directly on the renin-angiotensin system can cause injury and death to the developing fetus.

Serious side effects have been reported with Monopril HCT or its ingredients including the following:

• Allergic reactions. Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have some or all of the following symptoms:
  • swelling of the face, limbs, lips, tongue, throat
  • difficulty breathing
  • stomach (abdominal) pain (intestinal angioedema) with or without nausea or vomiting
• Low blood pressure. Tell your healthcare provider if you continue to experience light headedness. 
• Lowered white blood cell count (neutropenia) increasing the risk of infections
• Harm to an unborn baby (fetal toxicity). Do not take Monopril HCT if you are pregnant or will become pregnant.
• Liver damage.
• An autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue (systemic lupus erythematosus)
• Imbalances in the levels of salts and fluids in your body (electrolyte and fluid imbalance). Tell your healthcare provider right away if you have some or all of the following symptoms:
  • dry mouth
  • thirst
  • weakness
  • drowsiness
  • restlessness
  • muscle pains or cramps
  • low blood pressure
  • low output of urine
  • fast heart rate
  • nausea
  • vomiting

Monopril HCT can cause tiredness (fatigue) and dizziness. Do not drive or operate heavy machinery until you know how Monopril HCT affects you.

Do not take Monopril HCT if you:

• are allergic to fosinopril, to any other ACE inhibitor, to hydrochlorothiazide, or other sulfonamide-derived drugs, or any other ingredient in Monopril HCT
• kidneys are unable to produce urine (anuric)

Serious side effects have been reported with Monopril HCT. See the "Monopril HCT Precautions" section. 

Common side effects of Monopril HCT include the following:

• headache
• cough
• tiredness (fatigue)
• dizziness
• an infection that affects the nose, throat, and airways (upper respiratory infection)
• muscle pain

This is not a complete list of Monopril HCT side effects. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information. 

Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away.

Call your doctor for medical advice about side effects. You may report side effects to the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088. 

Tell your doctor about all the medicines you take including prescription and nonprescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Especially tell your doctor if you are taking:

• potassium supplements or potassium-containing salt substitutes
• potassium ­sparing diuretics such as spironolactone (Aldactone), triamterene (Dyrenium), and amiloride (Midamor)
• lithium (Lithobid)
• antacids
• injectable gold (sodium aurothiomalate)
• nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) such as naproxen (Aleve) and ibuprofen (Advil)
• cholestyramine (Questran) and colestipol (Colestid)

• certain medications that also lower blood pressure such as angiotensin-­converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors like enalapril (Vasotec, Vaseretic) and angiotensin receptor II blockers (ARBs) like valsartan (Diovan)
• aliskiren (Tekturna)
• norepinephrine (Levophed)

This is not a complete list of Monopril HCT drug interactions. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information. 

Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.

The FDA categorizes medications based on safety for use during pregnancy. Five categories - A, B, C, D, and X, are used to classify the possible risks to an unborn baby when a medication is taken during pregnancy.

Monopril HCT falls into category D. When pregnancy is detected, discontinue Monopril HCT as soon as possible. Drugs that act directly on the renin-angiotensin system can cause injury and death to the unborn baby.

Tell your doctor is you are breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed. 

Monopril HCT's two ingredients, benazepril and hydrochlorothiazide, have been detected in human breast milk. Because of the possibility for adverse reactions in nursing infants from Monopril HCT, a choice should be made whether to stop nursing or to stop use of this medication. The importance of the drug to the mother should be considered.