In what is believed to be a first in the UK, pharmaceutical company Bristol Laboratories Ltd has launched Amlodipine besilate tablets in 2.5mg dose.
The drug is indicated for patients with hypertension, chronic stable angina pectoris and vasospastic (Prinzmetal) angina.
The 2.5mg tablets can now be prescribed for paediatric population – children and adolescents with hypertension from 6 to 17 years of age, who need a 2.5 mg once daily as a starting dose, up-titrated to 5 mg once daily if blood pressure goal is not achieved after four weeks.
“The 2.5 mg dose cannot be obtained with Amlodipine tablets 5 mg and 10mg as these tablets are not manufactured to break into two equal halves,” according to the electronic medicines compendium.
In hypertensive patients, amlodipine has been used in combination with a thiazide diuretic, alpha-blocker, beta blocker, or angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor.
For angina, amlodipine may be used as monotherapy or in combination with other antianginal drugs in patients with angina that is refractory to nitrates and /or adequate doses of beta blockers.
