Ivabradine (Procoralan®)

This information leaflet is designed for patients who have been prescribed ivabradine as part of their treatment. Please take the time to read this leaflet when starting treatment.

What is ivabradine and what does it do?

Ivabradine works by selectively interfering with the messages that regulate your heart rate leading to a reduction in your heart rate. This reduction in heart rate alters the oxygen requirements of your heart, especially when an angina attack is likely, therefore reducing the number of angina attacks.

The action of reducing the heart rate also helps to improve ongoing heart function.

Why am I being prescribed ivabradine?

Ivabradine is a medicine used to treat heart conditions including stable angina (chest pain) and a condition called chronic heart failure. In both of these conditions ivabradine is used in addition to a medicine called a beta-blocker or as an alternative when these medicines are not suitable.

The aim of using ivabradine is to reduce your heart rate to increase the efficiency of each heart beat and to not overwork your heart overall.

How do I take my ivabradine tablets?

For both angina and chronic heart failure treatment the dose can vary. The dose may increase over time to achieve maximum benefit from the medicine but this will be explained to you by your doctor.

Treatment with ivabradine can be life long and you should not stop taking the medication unless advised to by your doctor.

You should take the medicine around the same time each day, for example in the morning and evening. A sun and moon symbol on the blister pack indicating morning and evening tablet will help remind you.

Ivabradine should be taken during meals.

Avoid grapefruit juice whilst taking ivabradine.

Sometimes the dose prescribed will require halving of the tablets. Note that the tablets are designed to be halved and can be easily snapped in half. If you are finding this difficult, tablet cutters can be bought from your local pharmacy.

Are there any side effects?

Ivabradine can have some side effects; however, taking the medicine does not mean you will definitely experience these.

One of the main side effects experienced can be disturbances to vision; this is often caused by a sudden change in light intensity with symptoms described as experiencing a halo or coloured flashes.

These symptoms will often occur within the first two months and usually settle or go away over time. However, it is important to advise your doctor about this so he/she can manage your condition appropriately.

• Other side effects can include:
  • Feeling tired – this is because of the heart rate reducing effects of this medicine.
  • Irregular or rapid feeling heartbeat – this is less common and should be reported to your doctor.
  • Headache and dizziness may also occur.

Special warnings or precautions you need to be aware of:

Tell your doctor straight away if you:

• Experience symptoms such as tiredness, dizziness or shortness of breath. These can indicate that your heart beat is too low.
• If you recognise an irregular heartbeat, experience palpitations or have an increase in chest pain.
• If you accidentally take more than the recommended dose and experience breathlessness or tiredness.

Due to the potential effects to vision, care should be taken when driving and operating machinery, especially at night.

Are there any problems taking ivabradine tablets with any other medications or foods/drinks?

Only take tablets prescribed for you by your doctor and check with your pharmacist before taking any new medicines. Please refer to the patient information leaflet included in the box of medicines for a more comprehensive list.

In particular, tell your doctor or pharmacist if you are taking one of the following substances which alter the amount of this medicine in your blood as increased monitoring may be required:

Avoid grapefruit juice whilst taking ivabradine.

Further information about your tablet can be found in the patient information leaflet found in the tablet box or in the container.

For further advice please contact:

If you have any other questions about your medication, please contact the medicine helpline on 01223 217502.