Valsartan
- Class: ARB
- Used for: high blood pressure
- Say it: val-SAR-tan
- Forms: tablet, oral liquid
Remember the name – VAL → valve, SARTAN → artery
VALSARTAN shuts the VALVE on the ARTERY's receptor, so angiotensin II arrives and finds the door locked.
Unlike an ACE inhibitor it leaves angiotensin II intact and blocks its docking site. No bradykinin builds up, which is why there is no dry cough.
VALSARTAN shuts the VALVE on the ARTERY's receptor, so angiotensin II arrives and finds the door locked.
Unlike an ACE inhibitor it leaves angiotensin II intact and blocks its docking site. No bradykinin builds up, which is why there is no dry cough.
Mnemonic: Another -SARTAN, still no cough
Same class as losartan. An ARB is the standard answer when an ACE inhibitor is right in principle but the patient cannot live with the cough.
Same class as losartan. An ARB is the standard answer when an ACE inhibitor is right in principle but the patient cannot live with the cough.
Side effects
Common: dizziness, high potassium, headache
Serious: kidney injury, harm in pregnancy
Typical dose
80–320 mg once daily
Start at 40–80 mg and double no faster than every two weeks. The heart failure target is 160 mg twice daily.
Check yourself
What is the usual reason to choose an ARB over an ACE inhibitor?
- The patient cannot tolerate the ACE-inhibitor cough
- ARBs lower blood pressure considerably more
- ARBs are safe to use in pregnancy
- ARBs have no effect on potassium
Show answer
A. The patient cannot tolerate the ACE-inhibitor cough
The two classes are close to equivalent on blood pressure and outcomes. Both raise potassium and both are forbidden in pregnancy — the cough really is the deciding difference.
See it, don't memorize it
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