What are thiazide diuretics and what are they used for?
A diuretic is a medicine which increases the amount of water that you pass out from your kidneys. (A diuretic causes a ‘diuresis’ – an increase in urine.) So, they are sometimes called ‘water tablets’. There are different types of diuretics which work in different ways. Thiazide diuretics are one type of diuretic. The most commonly used thiazide is called bendroflumethiazide (bendrofluazide). Other thiazide diuretics include chlortalidone (chlorthalidone), benzthiazide, clopamide, cyclopenthiazide, hydrochlorothiazide, xipamide, indapamide, hydroflumethiazide and metolazone. Each comes in different brand names. Thiazide diuretics are a common treatment for high blood pressure. They are also used to clear fluid from the body in conditions where your body accumulates too much fluid such as heart failure. (But, a type of diuretic called a ‘loop diuretic’ is more commonly used to treat heart failure.) How do thiazide diuretics work? One of their effects is to make the kidneys pass out more
