Ciplavasc 5 contains amlodipine besylate 5 mg, a calcium channel blocker from Cipla. It lowers high blood pressure and prevents angina, taken once daily. 5 mg is the usual starting strength, and ankle swelling is the commonest side effect.
What is Ciplavasc 5?
Ciplavasc 5 contains amlodipine besylate 5 mg. “Ciplavasc” identifies Cipla’s brand and “5” the strength — the active ingredient is what matters, and the same medicine is dispensed as Amlodipine, Austell Amlodipine, Norvasc and Amloc. It is a Schedule 3 medicine.
Amlodipine is a calcium channel blocker. Muscle in the walls of arteries needs calcium to contract; amlodipine blocks the channels that let calcium in, so the muscle relaxes. Arteries widen, resistance to blood flow falls, and blood pressure comes down. Because the heart pumps against less resistance and the coronary arteries are wider, angina episodes also become less frequent.
5 mg is the usual starting strength, with 10 mg the common step up if blood pressure is not controlled. Many people remain on 5 mg indefinitely.
Two features make it one of the most prescribed blood pressure medicines in South Africa. It is long-acting, so one tablet covers a full 24 hours. And it is metabolically neutral — it does not affect potassium, blood sugar or lung function, which makes it suitable across a wide range of people, including many with diabetes, asthma or gout.
What is Ciplavasc 5 commonly used for?
- High blood pressure (hypertension), alone or with other medicines.
- Angina, reducing how often episodes occur, including the vasospastic (Prinzmetal) form.
- Coronary artery disease, as part of overall management.
High blood pressure is the main use, and what treatment is for deserves stating plainly.
Hypertension causes no symptoms. People feel identical on treatment and off it, which is why blood pressure tablets are among the most abandoned medicines. The point is not how you feel today: sustained high blood pressure damages arteries, the heart, the kidneys, the eyes and the brain over years. Treating it substantially reduces the risk of stroke, heart attack and kidney failure.
Feeling fine is what successfully treated hypertension feels like — not evidence that the medicine has become unnecessary.
Blood pressure medicines are also commonly combined, because two at moderate amounts usually control pressure better, and with fewer side effects, than one pushed to its maximum. Amlodipine pairs well with an ACE inhibitor such as enalapril or a diuretic such as Ridaq — and pairing it with an ACE inhibitor has a practical bonus, covered below.
How Ciplavasc 5 fits into this medicine category
| Group | Examples | How it works |
|---|---|---|
| Calcium channel blockers | Amlodipine (Ciplavasc, Amloc) | Relaxes artery walls |
| ACE inhibitors | Enalapril, perindopril | Blocks a vessel-narrowing hormone |
| ARBs | Losartan, valsartan | Similar target, without the cough |
| Thiazide diuretics | Hydrochlorothiazide (Ridaq) | Removes excess fluid and salt |
| Beta blockers | Atenolol, carvedilol | Slows the heart, reduces its workload |
South African guidelines often favour a calcium channel blocker or diuretic as a first choice in Black patients, in whom ACE inhibitors are somewhat less effective used alone. See the heart, blood pressure and circulation medicines hub.
What to check before using Ciplavasc 5
Take it at the same time each day, with or without food, and keep taking it even when you feel well.
Avoid grapefruit juice, which can raise amlodipine levels.
Tell your prescriber or pharmacist if:
- You have heart failure, or severe narrowing of the aortic valve.
- You have liver disease — amlodipine is processed by the liver and may need adjustment.
- You have had a recent heart attack or unstable angina.
- You are pregnant, planning pregnancy or breastfeeding.
- You take simvastatin. Amlodipine raises simvastatin levels, so it is usually capped at 20 mg — a common and easily missed interaction.
- You take other blood pressure medicines, or a prostate medicine such as tamsulosin, which also lowers blood pressure.
- You are prone to dizziness on standing.
Have your blood pressure checked regularly. Treatment is adjusted to your readings, and a home monitor is genuinely useful if you can get one — a single clinic reading is a poor guide on its own.
Follow the dispensing label. This page does not set doses.
Possible cautions and when to ask a pharmacist or doctor
Ankle and leg swelling is the commonest effect. It occurs because amlodipine widens small arteries more than veins, so fluid collects in the tissues. It is not usually a sign of heart or kidney trouble.
Three useful facts about it: it is dose-related, so it is less likely at 5 mg than 10 mg and often improves if the amount is reduced; it frequently improves when an ACE inhibitor or ARB is added, which balances pressure across the capillary; and it does not respond to diuretics, so a water tablet is not the answer.
Raise it with your prescriber rather than stopping — there are good options, and stopping leaves the blood pressure untreated.
Flushing, headache and dizziness are common in the first weeks and usually settle.
Do not stop suddenly because you feel well or because of a side effect.
Get up slowly from sitting or lying if you feel light-headed.
Seek medical attention for chest pain that is new, worse or more frequent; breathlessness; fainting; a very fast or irregular heartbeat; marked swelling of the face or lips; swelling that worsens quickly or affects one leg only, which may indicate a clot; or yellowing of the skin or eyes.
Related medicine guides
- Browse Heart, Blood Pressure & Circulation Medicines guides
- Read: Ciplavasc used for
- Read: Ridaq used for
Frequently asked questions
What is Ciplavasc 5 used for? High blood pressure and the prevention of angina. It contains amlodipine besylate 5 mg.
Is 5 mg a low dose? It is the usual starting strength, and many people stay on it. 10 mg is the common step up if blood pressure is not controlled.
Is it the same as Norvasc or Amloc? Yes. Different brand names for the same active ingredient. “Ciplavasc” identifies Cipla as the manufacturer.
Why are my ankles swelling? This is amlodipine’s commonest effect. It is dose-related and often improves when an ACE inhibitor is added. Tell your prescriber rather than stopping.
Can I stop once my blood pressure is normal? No. The reading is normal because of the medicine. Stopping usually returns it to where it was.
Can I take simvastatin with it? Yes, but the simvastatin amount is usually limited to 20 mg because amlodipine raises its levels.