Felodipine
Is It Right for You?
A complete guide to Felodipine — what it treats, how it works, dosages, side effects, and when a clinician may prescribe it following an online consultation.
What Is Felodipine?
Felodipine is a calcium channel blocker used to treat high blood pressure and angina. It relaxes and widens the blood vessels, allowing blood to flow more easily and reducing the pressure inside them.
It is taken as a modified-release tablet, usually once a day, which releases the medicine slowly for a steady effect. It is available generically and under brand names such as Plendil.
Felodipine is a prescription-only medication in the UK. A licensed clinician must review your symptoms and medical history before it can be prescribed - which can now be done conveniently through a telehealth consultation.
What Conditions Is Felodipine Used For?
Felodipine is prescribed for:
lowering raised blood pressure to reduce the long-term risk of stroke and heart disease.
preventing chest pain by improving blood flow and reducing the heart's workload.
Grapefruit and grapefruit juice can substantially increase felodipine levels in the blood, raising the risk of side effects such as low blood pressure. Avoid them while taking this medicine.
How Does Felodipine Work?
Felodipine belongs to the dihydropyridine group of calcium channel blockers. It blocks calcium from entering the muscle cells in the walls of blood vessels.
Calcium is needed for these muscles to contract, so blocking it causes the blood vessels to relax and widen. This lowers blood pressure and improves blood flow to the heart, easing angina.
Felodipine acts mainly on blood vessels rather than the heart itself, so it has little direct effect on heart rate compared with some other medicines in the same broad class.
Dosages & Administration
The correct dose depends on the type and severity of infection, age, weight, and kidney function. Always follow your clinician's instructions. The table below is for general reference only.
Administration Tips
Swallow the tablet whole with water. Do not crush, chew, or split modified-release tablets.
Avoid grapefruit and grapefruit juice, which can raise the level of felodipine in your blood.
Side Effects of Felodipine
Side effects often relate to the widening of blood vessels and are most noticeable when you first start or increase the dose.
- Ankle or leg swelling (oedema)
- Flushing or feeling warm
- Headache
- Dizziness
- Fast or pounding heartbeat (palpitations)
- Severe dizziness or fainting
- Significant swelling of the ankles or feet
- Worsening chest pain shortly after starting
- Severe skin rash
- Swollen, tender gums
Mild ankle swelling is a common effect of calcium channel blockers and is not usually dangerous. Tell your clinician if it becomes troublesome, as the dose or medicine may be adjusted.
Drug Interactions
Always disclose all prescription drugs, over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and supplements to your clinician or pharmacist before starting felodipine.
Markedly increases felodipine blood levels and the risk of low blood pressure. Avoid completely.
Medicines such as ketoconazole, itraconazole, and erythromycin can raise felodipine levels and should be used cautiously.
Combined use enhances the blood-pressure-lowering effect, sometimes causing excessive dizziness.
These can reduce felodipine levels and make it less effective.
Felodipine may affect tacrolimus levels; monitoring may be required in transplant patients.
Important Warnings
Felodipine can cause your blood pressure to drop too low, leading to dizziness or fainting, particularly when standing up quickly or after the first dose. Rise slowly from sitting or lying.
Tell your clinician if you have heart failure or significant heart valve disease, as felodipine may not be suitable or may need extra caution.
Felodipine is broken down by the liver, so a lower dose may be needed if your liver function is reduced. Your clinician will assess this before prescribing.
Felodipine is generally avoided in pregnancy unless clearly needed. Tell your clinician if you are pregnant, planning pregnancy, or breastfeeding so a suitable option can be chosen.
Speak to a Clinician About Treatment
Getting advice no longer means sitting in a waiting room. Through The GP Service, you can consult with a licensed clinician in minutes — from home, on your lunch break, or wherever works for you. If treatment is clinically appropriate, your clinician can issue a prescription during the consultation. A consultation does not guarantee a prescription.
The treatment you need, when you need it.
Felodipine FAQs
Yes. A licensed clinician can review your blood pressure and medical history through a telehealth consultation and prescribe felodipine if it is clinically appropriate.
Grapefruit blocks an enzyme that breaks down felodipine, which can raise the amount in your blood and increase side effects such as low blood pressure and flushing.
Ankle swelling is a common, generally harmless effect of calcium channel blockers caused by widening of small blood vessels. Tell your clinician if it bothers you.
It starts lowering blood pressure within a few hours, but the full effect builds over one to two weeks of regular dosing.
No. Felodipine modified-release tablets must be swallowed whole. Crushing or chewing them releases the medicine too quickly.
Take it as soon as you remember unless it is almost time for the next dose, in which case skip it. Do not take a double dose.