Enalapril

Enalapril, sold under the brand name Vasotec among others, is an ACE inhibitor medication used to treat high blood pressure, diabetic kidney disease, and heart failure. For heart failure, it is generally used with a diuretic, such as furosemide. It is given by mouth or by injection into a vein. Onset of effects are typically within an hour when taken by mouth and last for up to a day. Common side effects include headache, tiredness, feeling lightheaded with standing, and cough. Serious side effects include angioedema and low blood pressure. Use during pregnancy is believed to result in harm to the baby. It is in the angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitor family of medications. Enalapril was patented in 1978, and came into medical use in 1984. It is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines. In 2020, it was the 329th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 800 thousand prescriptions. As of August 2021, enalapril is available as a generic medicine in the US. Enalapril has an L-proline moiety as a part of the molecule which is responsible for the oral bioavailability of the drug. It is a pro-drug, which means that it exerts its function after being metabolized. The "-OCH2CH3" part of the molecule will split during the metabolism and at the carbon will be a carboxylate, which then interacts with the Zn+2 site of the ACE Enzyme. This structural feature and mechanism of metabolism that must occur before the drug can inhibit the enzyme explains why it has a greater duration of action than another similar drug used for the same indication, Captopril. Duration of effect is dose-related; at recommended doses, antihypertensive and haemodynamic effects have been shown to be maintained for at least 24 hours. Enalapril has a slower onset of action than Captopril but a greater duration of action. However, unlike Captopril, Enalapril does not have a thiol moiety. Enalapril is used to treat hypertension, symptomatic heart failure, and asymptomatic left ventricular dysfunction.