Coreg vs. Tenormin

• Are Coreg and Tenormin the Same Thing?
• What Are Possible Side Effects of Coreg?
• What Are Possible Side Effects of Tenormin?
• What Is Coreg?
• What Is Tenormin?
• What Drugs Interact with Coreg?
• What Drugs Interact with Tenormin?
• How Should Coreg Be Taken?
• How Should Tenormin Be Taken?

Coreg (carvedilol) and Tenormin (atenolol) (and Tenormin IV) are beta-adrenergic blocking agents (beta-blockers) used to treat hypertension, and left ventricular dysfunction after a heart attack.

Coreg is also used to treat heart failure, hypertension, and left ventricular dysfunction after a heart attack.

Tenormin is used mainly for control of angina, for management of acute myocardial infarction (heart attack), and occasionally for thyroid storm management.

Side effects of Coreg and Tenormin that are similar include dizziness, lightheadedness, nausea, tiredness, decreased sex drive, impotence, or difficulty having an orgasm.

Common side effects of Coreg include:

• dizziness,
• lightheadedness,
• drowsiness,
• diarrhea,
• nausea,
• vomiting,
• weakness,
• tiredness,
• headache,
• joint pain,
• cough,
• dry eyes,
• vision changes,
• numbness or tingling sensation,
• decreased sex drive,
• impotence, or
• difficulty having an orgasm.

Contact your doctor if you experience serious side effects of Coreg including

• feeling faint,
• slow or irregular heart beats,
• chest pain,
• shortness of breath,
• difficulty swallowing
• loss of bladder control, or
• severe skin reaction.

Common side effects of Tenormin include:

• dizziness,
• faintness,
• feeling lightheaded,
• lethargy,
• fatigue,
• mild slow heart rate,
• depression,
• insomnia,
• nightmares,
• shortness of breath,
• constipation,
• indigestion,
• dry mouth,
• impotence,
• cold feeling in the hands and feet,
• confusion, and
• swelling

Serious side effects of Tenormin may include:

• irregular heartbeat,
• low blood pressure (hypotension),
• pulmonary emboli,
• chest pain, and
• bronchospasm.

Coreg is a prescription medicine that belongs to a group of medicines called "beta-blockers". Coreg is used, often with other medicines, for the following conditions:

• to treat patients with certain types of heart failure
• to treat patients who had a heart attack that worsened how well the heart pumps
• to treat patients with high blood pressure (hypertension)
• Coreg is not approved for use in children under 18 years of age.

Tenormin is a beta-blocker used mainly for control of hypertension, angina, for management of acute myocardial infarction and occasionally for thyroid storm management. The brand name drug Tenormin is no longer available in the U.S. It may be available in generic form.

Coreg may interact with cimetidine, diabetes medications, heart medicines, MAO inhibitors, and medicine to treat psychiatric disorders.

Coreg may also interact with allergy treatments (or if you are undergoing allergy skin-testing), cyclosporine, fluconazole, rifampin, antidepressants, blood pressure medicines, heart rhythm medications, HIV or AIDS medicines, medicine to prevent or treat nausea and vomiting, or narcotics.

Tenormin may interact with heart medications.

Tenormin may also interact with allergy treatments (or if you are undergoing allergy skin-testing), amiodarone, clonidine, digoxin, disopyramide, guanabenz, MAO inhibitors, diabetes medications, medicine for asthma or other breathing disorders, cold medicines, stimulant medicines, or diet pills.

It is important for you to take your medicine every day as directed by your doctor. If you stop taking Coreg suddenly, you could have chest pain and/or a heart attack. If your doctor decides that you should stop taking Coreg, your doctor may slowly lower your dose over a period of time before stopping it completely.

• Take Coreg exactly as prescribed. Your doctor will tell you how many tablets to take and how often. In order to minimize possible side effects, your doctor might begin with a low dose and then slowly increase the dose.
• Do not stop taking Coreg and do not change the amount of Coreg you take without talking to your doctor.
• Tell your doctor if you gain weight or have trouble breathing while taking Coreg.
• Take Coreg with food.
• If you miss a dose of Coreg, take your dose as soon as you remember, unless it is time to take your next dose. Take your next dose at the usual time. Do not take 2 doses at the same time.
• If you take too much Coreg, call your doctor or poison control center right away.

Tenormin is available in 25, 50 and 100 mg strength tablets; it is also available vials of 5 mg atenolol in ten ml of citrate-buffered solution for intravenous injection. The IV preparation should only be administered by trained personnel. The usual dose for tablets begins at 25 mg once or twice per day and is modified by patient response to the medication. The following information applies to both the tablet and IV forms of atenolol. Use with calcium channel blockers (CCBs) may precipitate bradycardia. This medication should be used during pregnancy only when clearly needed. It may harm an unborn baby. This medication passes into breast milk and may have undesirable effects on a nursing infant. Consult the doctor before breastfeeding. Women taking Tenormin should discuss the risks and benefits with their doctor. Safety and effectiveness has not been established in pediatric patients.