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Pregnancy Category D
Use of drugs that act on the renin-angiotensin system during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy reduces fetal renal function and increases fetal and neonatal morbidity and death. Resulting oligohydramnios can be associated with fetal lung hypoplasia and skeletal deformations. Potential neonatal adverse effects include skull hypoplasia, anuria, hypotension, renal failure, and death. When pregnancy is detected, discontinue Tekturna HCT as soon as possible [see Use in Specific Populations].
Thiazides cross the placenta, and use of thiazides during pregnancy is associated with a risk of fetal or neonatal jaundice, thrombocytopenia, and possible other adverse reactions that have occurred in Tekturna HCT.
Renal Impairment/Hyperkalemia/Hypotension when Tekturna HCT is given in combination with ARBs or ACEIs
Tekturna HCT is contraindicated in patients with diabetes who are receiving ARBs or ACEIs because of the increased risk of renal impairment, hyperkalemia, and hypotension [see CONTRAINDICATIONS and Clinical Studies].
Avoid use of Tekturna HCT with ARBs or ACEIs in patients with moderate renal impairment (GFR < 60 ml/min).
Anaphylactic Reactions and Head and Neck Angioedema
Hypersensitivity reactions such as anaphylactic reactions and angioedema of the face, extremities, lips, tongue, glottis and/or larynx have been reported in patients treated with Tekturna and has necessitated hospitalization and intubation. This may occur at any time during treatment and has occurred in patients with and without a history of angioedema with ACE inhibitors or angiotensin receptor antagonists. Anaphylactic reactions have been reported from post-marketing experience with unknown frequency. If angioedema involves the throat, tongue, glottis or larynx, or if the patient has a history of upper respiratory surgery, airway obstruction may occur and be fatal. Patients who experience these effects, even without respiratory distress, require prolonged observation and appropriate monitoring measures since treatment with antihistamines and corticosteroids may not be sufficient to prevent respiratory involvement. Prompt administration of subcutaneous epinephrine solution 1:1000 (0.3 to 0.5 ml) and measures to ensure a patent airway may be necessary.
Discontinue Tekturna HCT immediately in patients who develop anaphylactic reactions or angioedema, and do not readminister.
Symptomatic hypotension may occur after initiation of treatment with Tekturna HCT in patients with marked volume depletion, patients with salt depletion, or with combined use of aliskiren and other agents acting on the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. The volume or salt depletion should be corrected prior to administration of Tekturna HCT, or the treatment should start under close medical supervision.
Impaired Renal Function
Monitor renal function periodically in patients treated with Tekturna HCT. Changes in renal function, including acute renal failure, can be caused by drugs that affect the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system and by diuretics. Patients whose renal function may depend in part on the activity of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (e.g., patients with renal artery stenosis, severe heart failure, post-myocardial infarction or volume depletion) or patients receiving ARB, ACEI or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) therapy may be at particular risk of developing acute renal failure on Tekturna HCT [see CONTRAINDICATIONS, Clinical Studies]. Consider withholding or discontinuing therapy in patients who develop a clinically significant decrease in renal function on Tekturna HCT.
Systemic Lupus Erythematosus
Serum Electrolyte Abnormalities
In the short-term controlled trials of various doses of Tekturna HCT, in patients with hypertension not concomitantly treated with an ARB or ACEI, the incidence of hypertensive patients who developed hypokalemia (serum potassium < 3.5 mEq/L) was 2.2%; the incidence of hyperkalemia (serum potassium > 5.5 mEq/L) was 0.8%. No patients discontinued due to increase or decrease of serum potassium.
Monitor serum potassium periodically in patients receiving aliskiren. Drugs that affect the renin-angiotensinaldosterone system can cause hyperkalemia. Risk factors for the development of hyperkalemia include renal insufficiency, diabetes, combination use with ARBs or ACEI [see CONTRAINDICATIONS, and Clinical Studies], NSAIDs, or potassium supplements or potassium sparing diuretics.
If hypokalemia is accompanied by clinical signs (e.g., muscular weakness, paresis, or ECG alterations), Tekturna HCT should be discontinued. Correction of hypokalemia and any coexisting hypomagnesemia is recommended prior to the initiation of thiazides.
Cyclosporine or Itraconazole
When aliskiren was given with cyclosporine or itraconazole, the blood concentrations of aliskiren were significantly increased. Avoid concomitant use of aliskiren with cyclosporine or itraconazole [see DRUG INTERACTIONS].
Acute Myopia and Secondary Angle-Closure Glaucoma
Hydrochlorothiazide, a sulfonamide, can cause an idiosyncratic reaction, resulting in acute transient myopia and acute angle-closure glaucoma. Symptoms include acute onset of decreased visual acuity or ocular pain and typically occur within hours to weeks of drug initiation. Untreated acute angle-closure glaucoma can lead to permanent vision loss. The primary treatment is to discontinue hydrochlorothiazide as rapidly as possible. Prompt medical or surgical treatments may need to be considered if the intraocular pressure remains uncontrolled. Risk factors for developing acute angle-closure glaucoma may include a history of sulfonamide or penicillin allergy.
Hydrochlorothiazide may alter glucose tolerance and raise serum levels of cholesterol and triglycerides.
Hydrochlorothiazide decreases urinary calcium excretion and may cause elevations of serum calcium. Monitor calcium levels in patients with hypercalcemia receiving Tekturna HCT.
Patient Counseling Information
See FDA-approved patient labeling (PATIENT INFORMATION)
Healthcare professionals should instruct their patients to read the Patient Package Insert before starting Tekturna HCT and to reread each time the prescription is renewed. Patients should be instructed to inform their doctor or pharmacist if they develop any unusual symptom, or if any known symptom persists or worsens.
Female patients of childbearing age should be told about the consequences of exposure to Tekturna HCT during pregnancy. Discuss treatment options with women planning to become pregnant. Patients should be asked to report pregnancies to their physicians as soon as possible.
A patient receiving Tekturna HCT should be cautioned that lightheadedness can occur, especially during the first days of therapy, and that it should be reported to the prescribing physician. The patients should be told that if syncope occurs, Tekturna HCT should be discontinued until the physician has been consulted.
All patients should be cautioned that inadequate fluid intake, excessive perspiration, diarrhea, or vomiting can lead to an excessive fall in blood pressure, with the same consequences of lightheadedness and possible syncope.
Anaphylactic Reactions and Angioedema
Patients should be advised and told to report immediately any signs or symptoms suggesting a severe allergic reaction (difficulty breathing or swallowing, tightness of the chest, hives, general rash, swelling, itching, dizziness, vomiting, or abdominal pain) or angioedema (swelling of face, extremities, eyes, lips, tongue, difficulty in swallowing or breathing) and to take no more drug until they have consulted with the prescribing physician. Angioedema, including laryngeal edema, may occur at any time during treatment with Tekturna HCT.
A patient receiving Tekturna HCT should be told not to use potassium supplements or salt substitutes containing potassium without consulting the prescribing physician.
Relationship to Meals
Patients should establish a routine pattern for taking Tekturna HCT with regard to meals. High-fat meals decrease absorption substantially.
Carcinogenesis, Mutagenesis, Impairment of Fertility
No carcinogenicity, mutagenicity or fertility studies have been conducted with Tekturna HCT. However, these studies have been conducted for aliskiren as well as hydrochlorothiazide alone.
Carcinogenic potential was assessed in a 2-year rat study and a 6-month transgenic (rasH2) mouse study with aliskiren hemifumarate at oral doses of up to 1500 mg aliskiren/kg/day. Although there were no statistically significant increases in tumor incidence associated with exposure to aliskiren, mucosal epithelial hyperplasia (with or without erosion/ulceration) was observed in the lower gastrointestinal tract at doses of 750 or more mg/kg/day in both species, with a colonic adenoma identified in one rat and a cecal adenocarcinoma identified in another, rare tumors in the strain of rat studied. On a systemic exposure (AUC0-24hr) basis, 1500 mg/kg/day in the rat is about 4 times and in the mouse about 1.5 times the maximum recommended human dose (300 mg aliskiren/day). Mucosal hyperplasia in the cecum or colon of rats was also observed at doses of 250 mg/kg/day (the lowest tested dose) as well as at higher doses in 4- and 13-week studies.
Aliskiren hemifumarate was devoid of genotoxic potential in the Ames reverse mutation assay with S. typhimurium and E. coli, the in vitro Chinese hamster ovary cell chromosomal aberration assay, the in vitro Chinese hamster V79 cell gene mutation test and the in vivo mouse bone marrow micronucleus assay.
Fertility of male and female rats was unaffected at doses of up to 250 mg aliskiren/kg/day (8 times the maximum recommended human dose of 300 mg Tekturna/60 kg on a mg/m² basis).
Two-year feeding studies in mice and rats conducted under the auspices of the National Toxicology Program (NTP) uncovered no evidence of a carcinogenic potential of hydrochlorothiazide in female mice (at doses of up to approximately 600 mg/kg/day) or in male and female rats (at doses of up to approximately 100 mg/kg/day). The NTP, however, found equivocal evidence for hepatocarcinogenicity in male mice.
Hydrochlorothiazide was not genotoxic in vitro in the Ames mutagenicity assay of S. typhimurium strains TA 98, TA 100, TA 1535, TA 1537, and TA 1538 and in the Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) test for chromosomal aberrations, or in vivo in assays using mouse germinal cell chromosomes, Chinese hamster bone marrow chromosomes, and the Drosophila sex-linked recessive lethal trait gene. Positive test results were obtained only in the in vitro CHO Sister Chromatid Exchange (clastogenicity) and in the Mouse Lymphoma Cell (mutagenicity) assays, using concentrations of hydrochlorothiazide from 43 to 1300 mcgm/mL, and in the Aspergillums Nidulans nondisjunction assay at an unspecified concentration.
Hydrochlorothiazide was not teratogenic and had no adverse effects on the fertility of mice and rats of either sex in studies wherein these species were exposed, via their diet, to doses of up to 100 and 4 mg/kg, respectively, prior to mating and throughout gestation. These doses of hydrochlorothiazide in mice and rats represent 19 and 1.5 times, respectively, the maximum recommended human dose on a mg/m² basis. (Calculations assume an oral dose of 25 mg/day and a 60-kg patient.)
Use In Specific Populations
Pregnancy Category D
Use of drugs that act on the renin-angiotensin system during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy reduces fetal renal function and increases fetal and neonatal morbidity and death. Resulting oligohydramnios can be associated with fetal lung hypoplasia and skeletal deformations. Potential neonatal adverse effects include skull hypoplasia, anuria, hypotension, renal failure, and death. When pregnancy is detected, discontinue Tekturna HCT as soon as possible. These adverse outcomes are usually associated with use of these drugs in the second and third trimester of pregnancy. Most epidemiologic studies examining fetal abnormalities after exposure to antihypertensive use in the first trimester have not distinguished drugs affecting the renin- angiotensin system from other antihypertensive agents. Appropriate management of maternal hypertension during pregnancy is important to optimize outcomes for both mother and fetus.
In the unusual case that there is no appropriate alternative to therapy with drugs affecting the renin-angiotensin system for a particular patient, apprise the mother of the potential risk to the fetus. Perform serial ultrasound examinations to assess the intra-amniotic environment. If oligohydramnios is observed, discontinue Tekturna HCT, unless it is considered lifesaving for the mother. Fetal testing may be appropriate, based on the week of pregnancy. Patients and physicians should be aware, however, that oligohydramnios may not appear until after the fetus has sustained irreversible injury. Closely observe infants with histories of in utero exposure to Tekturna HCT for hypotension, oliguria, and hyperkalemia.
Thiazides cross the placenta, and use of thiazides during pregnancy is associated with a risk of fetal or neonatal jaundice, thrombocytopenia, and possible other adverse reactions that have occurred in adults.
Reproductive toxicity studies of aliskiren hemifumarate did not reveal any evidence of teratogenicity at oral doses up to 600 mg aliskiren/kg/day (20 times the maximum recommended human dose [MRHD] of 300 mg/day on a mg/m² basis) in pregnant rats or up to 100 mg aliskiren/kg/day (seven times the MRHD on a mg/m² basis) in pregnant rabbits. Fetal birth weight was adversely affected in rabbits at 50 mg/kg/day (3.2 times the MRHD on a mg/m² basis). Aliskiren was present in placenta, amniotic fluid and fetuses of pregnant rabbits.
When pregnant mice and rats were given hydrochlorothiazide at doses up to 3000 and 1000 mg/kg/day, respectively (about 600 and 400 times the MRHD) during their respective periods of major organogenesis, there was no evidence of fetal harm.
Thiazides can cross the placenta, and concentrations reached in the umbilical vein approach those in the maternal plasma. Hydrochlorothiazide, like other diuretics, can cause placental hypoperfusion. It accumulates in the amniotic fluid, with reported concentrations up to 19 times higher than in umbilical vein plasma. Use of thiazides during pregnancy is associated with a risk of fetal or neonatal jaundice or thrombocytopenia. Since they do not prevent or alter the course of EPH (Edema, Proteinuria, Hypertension) gestosis (pre eclampsia), these drugs should not be used to treat hypertension in pregnant women. The use of hydrochlorothiazide for other indications (e.g. heart disease) in pregnancy should be avoided.
It is not known whether aliskiren is excreted in human milk, but aliskiren was secreted in the milk of lactating rats. Thiazides appear in human milk. Because of the potential for adverse effects on the nursing infant, a decision should be made whether to discontinue nursing or discontinue the drug, taking into account the importance of the drug to the mother.
Safety and effectiveness in pediatric patients have not been established.
Neonates with a history of in utero exposure to Tekturna HCT
If oliguria or hypotension occurs, direct attention toward support of blood pressure and renal perfusion. Exchange transfusions or dialysis may be required as a means of reversing hypotension and/or substituting for disordered renal function.
In the short-term controlled clinical trials of Tekturna HCT, 325 (19.6%) patients treated with Tekturna HCT were ≥ 65 years and 53 (3.2%) were ≥ 75 years.
No overall differences in safety or effectiveness were observed between these subjects and younger subjects, and other reported clinical experience has not identified differences in responses between the elderly and younger patients, but greater sensitivity of some older individuals cannot be ruled out.
Safety and effectiveness of Tekturna HCT in patients with severe renal impairment (CrCl ≤ 30 mL/min) have not been established. No dose adjustment is required in patients with mild (CrCl 60-90 mL/min) or moderate (CrCl 30-60) renal impairment.
No dose adjustment is necessary for patients with mild-to-severe liver disease.
Last reviewed on RxList: 11/15/2013
This monograph has been modified to include the generic and brand name in many instances.
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