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Is a swollen upper lip an allergic reaction to blood pressure med?

Three days ago at about midnight my upper lip started feeling tingly and numb like a cold sore was forming. I got up and put some cold sore med on it but it felt different than usual. It was like a pea size bubble just left of the center of my lip and the numbness was not that of a cold sore. I had eaten Chinese food for lunch that day and had a feeling that was what was causing it. I didn't take anything and went back to bed. My cat wakes me up at 4:30 a.m. every morning to go outside, so I let her out and my whole lip was numb. I looked in the mirror and my whole top lip was HUGE. I got showered and dressed and had my aunt who lives next door drive me to the emergency room. The doctor on call didn't seem concerned about the Chinese food. He said it was an allergic reaction to my blood pressure medicine. I take Zestoretic 20/25 and I have taken it for over two years. I know I'm not a doctor but I just can't seem to accept that it is my BP med, it has worked so well for me. The Zestoretic has kept my blood pressure stable and I have not had any noticeable side effects from it. They gave me Benadryl and Prednisone(sp?) in the ER and the swelling finally went down by the next morning. The ER doctor told me to stop taking the Zestoretic and he gave me a 7 day sample of Benicar HCT 20/12.5 and told me to see my regular physician within the next three days. I have not seen me regular doctor yet, my appointment is tomorrow. I just wanted to hear from someone who may have experienced this or has some helpful advice on this subject. Also, while I was eating the Chinese food, a piece of the chicken looked really dark, darker than dark meat chicken and I jokingly told my daughter, "That doesn't look like chicken, I wonder if it really is".

Public Comments

1. i googled it and yes, that is a side effect. you should call the dr. who prescribed it to you.
2. It was definitely an allergic reaction and in all probabilities caused by one of the ingradients of the chinese food.Since the doctor has added prednisolone with an anti allergic medicine,it must be severe in nature .Don't stop prednisolone suddenly on your own without doctor's advise.It has to be tapered down slowly.The basic principle of anti hypertensive medicines is that once the patient is stabilized on it,the medicine is not changed unless there are some untoward side effects.The chances of you getting allergic reaction due to this anti HT medicine are very remote since you are taking it from a long time.The doc.appears to have gone by the theory that even anti allergic tabs.can cause allergy / first four injections have been well tolerated and the fifth one has caused allergic reaction---and it is true too.After you get well,go and have chicken at another chinese joint to rule out allergy to chicken.Keep some anti allergic tabs.handy.Chicken and eggs are among one of the most common things causing allergy.Approach your doctor early,he may like to put you back on old medicine or else to adjust the dose of your new medicine you will have to visit new doctor weekly till readjustment is made.