Have the medical tests your doctor recommends.
Regular blood pressure checks can let you know if your medicine needs adjusting.
Be alert to side effects.
If you think you are having a side effect, call your healthcare provider right away. Your doctor may be able to prescribe another medicine that can do just as good a job without the side effect. If you have signs of a severe allergic reaction — for example, you have trouble breathing, break out in a rash, start to swell up, or have a lot of itching — call 911.
Above all, don’t let worries over the risks of these drugs keep you from taking them.
Heart medicine resources
- A printable medicine chart to help you keep track of your medications is available at the AHA website. Visit and search for “medication chart.”A wide variety of resources on the wise use of prescription and other medications is available at the National Council on Patient Information and Education’s website. Visit and click on “For Medicine Users,” then “Tools for Consumers.”