Austell Losartan is losartan, a blood pressure medicine, in 50 mg and 100 mg tablets. There is also a Co version combining it with a diuretic. It is taken once daily, long term, for high blood pressure and to protect the kidneys in diabetes.
What is Austell Losartan?
Austell is the manufacturer; losartan is the medicine. Austell is a South African generic company, and losartan is registered here under many other names too — Annin, Zartan, Normoten, Zaario and others. Being given a different brand is ordinary generic substitution, and the tablets are the same medicine.
The South African Medicine Price Registry lists three presentations, all Schedule 3:
| Product | Contains |
|---|---|
| Austell Losartan | Losartan potassium 50 mg |
| Austell Losartan | Losartan potassium 100 mg |
| Austell Losartan Co 50/12.5 | Losartan 50 mg + hydrochlorothiazide 12.5 mg |
The “Co” version is a different medicine from the plain one, and worth checking on your box. It adds hydrochlorothiazide, a thiazide diuretic. Combining a blood pressure medicine with a low-dose diuretic controls pressure better than pushing either to its maximum — so being moved to a Co tablet is usually good prescribing rather than a sign of deterioration. But it brings the diuretic’s own cautions, particularly around potassium, sodium and gout.
Losartan is an angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB). The body has a hormone system that raises blood pressure when it detects a fall, and its final messenger — angiotensin II — narrows blood vessels and prompts salt and water retention. Losartan blocks the receptor angiotensin II acts on, so the hormone is produced but cannot work.
ARBs do not cause the dry cough that ACE inhibitors such as enalapril are known for, which is why people who develop that cough are usually switched to one.
What is Austell Losartan commonly used for?
- High blood pressure (hypertension) — the main use.
- Protecting the kidneys in type 2 diabetes. Losartan specifically has evidence for slowing the progression of diabetic kidney disease, and this is often why it is chosen.
- Chronic kidney disease with protein in the urine, reducing protein leakage and slowing decline.
- Heart failure, particularly where an ACE inhibitor is not tolerated.
- Reducing stroke risk in people with hypertension and thickening of the heart muscle.
- Lowering uric acid, a minor extra effect that can help in people prone to gout — though the hydrochlorothiazide in the Co version works the other way and can trigger gout.
Blood pressure treatment is preventive, not symptomatic. High blood pressure causes no symptoms until it causes a stroke, heart attack or kidney failure. Nobody feels better on treatment — which is exactly why people stop, and why stopping is so costly.
It is usually lifelong. A normal reading on treatment means the medicine is working, not that it is no longer needed.
How Austell Losartan fits into this medicine category
| Group | Examples | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| ARBs | Losartan (Austell Losartan), telmisartan, valsartan | Block angiotensin II at its receptor; no cough |
| ACE inhibitors | Enalapril, perindopril | Block its production; can cause dry cough |
| Calcium channel blockers | Amlodipine (Ciplavasc) | Relax arteries |
| Thiazide diuretics | Hydrochlorothiazide (Ridaq), indapamide | Remove salt and water |
| ARB + diuretic combinations | Austell Losartan Co | Two mechanisms in one tablet |
| Beta blockers | Carvedilol, bisoprolol | Slow the heart |
ACE inhibitors and ARBs should not be combined. See the heart and blood pressure medicines hub.
What to check before using Austell Losartan
Losartan must not be taken in pregnancy. ARBs cause serious harm to a developing baby, particularly in the second and third trimesters. If you are pregnant or planning pregnancy, tell your doctor so it can be changed before conception.
Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you:
- Have kidney disease or narrowing of the arteries to the kidneys.
- Have high potassium, or take potassium supplements or a salt substitute — most salt substitutes are potassium chloride, and losartan already raises potassium. This combination is under-appreciated.
- Take potassium-sparing diuretics — spironolactone, amiloride.
- Take lithium, whose levels rise substantially.
- Take anti-inflammatories regularly. NSAIDs reduce the blood pressure effect and, with an ARB and a diuretic, can damage the kidneys.
- Have liver disease, heart failure, or valve narrowing.
- Have gout — relevant to the Co version, since hydrochlorothiazide raises uric acid.
- Have diabetes — the Co version can raise blood sugar slightly.
- Are dehydrated, or have been vomiting or had diarrhoea.
- Are breastfeeding.
Practical points:
- Take it once daily at the same time, with or without food. If you have the Co version, take it in the morning so the diuretic effect falls during the day.
- Keep your blood tests — kidney function, potassium and, with the Co version, sodium.
- Get up slowly at first.
- Take care in hot weather and during illness, when dehydration develops quickly.
- Do not stop because your reading is normal.
Possible cautions and when to ask a pharmacist or doctor
Common effects are dizziness, particularly at first, tiredness and headache. The Co version adds the diuretic’s effects — increased urination, muscle cramps, and disturbances of sodium and potassium.
Get emergency help for:
- Swelling of the face, lips, tongue or throat, or difficulty breathing or swallowing — angioedema. Less common with ARBs than ACE inhibitors, but it can obstruct the airway.
- Fainting, or severe dizziness.
- Chest pain or severe breathlessness.
- Muscle weakness, palpitations or an irregular heartbeat — possible potassium disturbance.
- Confusion, marked drowsiness or unsteadiness — possible low sodium with the Co version, more common in older people.
Contact your doctor if:
- Readings stay high, or swing widely.
- You develop marked dizziness on standing, or muscle cramps.
- You have a vomiting or diarrhoea illness and cannot drink normally.
- A sudden painful, hot, swollen joint develops — possible gout with the Co version.
- Another prescriber starts you on a new medicine.
- You are pregnant or planning to be.
- You are running low on tablets.
Related medicine guides
Frequently asked questions
What is Austell Losartan used for? Lowering high blood pressure, protecting the kidneys in type 2 diabetes, treating heart failure and reducing stroke risk. It contains losartan.
What is Austell Losartan 100 mg used for? The same conditions at the higher strength, usually reached when 50 mg has not achieved target.
Is Austell the medicine? No. Austell is the manufacturer; losartan is the active ingredient. Always read the ingredient rather than the brand.
What is the Co version? Losartan combined with hydrochlorothiazide, a diuretic. It controls blood pressure better than either alone, and brings the diuretic’s own cautions.
Can I take it in pregnancy? No. ARBs cause serious harm to a developing baby. Tell your doctor before conceiving.
Can I stop when my blood pressure is normal? No. A normal reading means it is working. Pressure rises again within weeks of stopping.
Can I use a salt substitute? Ask first — most are potassium chloride, and losartan already raises potassium.
Why do I need blood tests? To check kidney function and potassium, and sodium if you take the Co version.