Are Statins Really Worth Taking For High Cholesterol
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Research has shown that statins are highly effective in reducing the risk of fatal heart attack and stroke. But some people are reluctant to take these life-saving drugs. They worry about taking medicine every day for the rest of their life or have heard that statins have undesirable side effects. What does science have to say about these concerns and others surrounding statins? We talked to UH interventional cardiologist Ian Neeland, MD, Director of the Center of Cardiovascular Prevention at University Hospitals, to learn more.
How Should I Take Crestor
Take Crestor exactly as prescribed by your doctor. Follow all directions on your prescription label. Your doctor may occasionally change your dose to make sure you get the best results. Do not take this medicine in larger or smaller amounts or for longer than recommended.
Crestor is usually taken once a day, with or without food. Take the medicine at the same time each day.
While using this medicine, you may need frequent blood tests.
Keep using this medicine as directed, even if you feel well. High cholesterol usually has no symptoms. You may need to take Crestor on a long-term basis.
You may need to stop using this medicine for a short time if you have:
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uncontrolled seizures
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surgery or a medical emergency.
You should not stop using Crestor unless your doctor tells you to.
Crestor is only part of a treatment program that may also include diet, exercise, and weight control. Follow your doctor’s instructions very closely.
Store at room temperature away from moisture, heat, and light.
Warnings For Other Groups
For people of Asian descent: You are at higher risk of side effects from this drug due to increased levels of rosuvastatin in your blood. Your doctor may start you at a lower dosage.
For pregnant people: In July 2021, the FDA requested that statins no longer be labeled as contraindicated during pregnancy. The FDA recommends that most people discontinue statins when they become pregnant, but the person should weigh their options with their doctor. The FDA has also requested that manufacturers update their package inserts to reflect the change. As of now, there is no deadline by which all manufacturers must update their package inserts.
For people who are nursing: This drug can pass into breast milk and may cause side effects in a child who is nursed. You should not nurse your child while taking this drug. Talk with your doctor if you nurse your child. You will need to decide whether to stop nursing or stop taking this medication.
For seniors: The kidneys of older adults may not work as well as they used to. This can cause your body to process drugs more slowly. As a result, a higher amount of a drug stays in your body for a longer time. This raises your risk of side effects from this drug. Your doctor will monitor you closely for side effects while you take this drug.
All possible dosages and drug forms may not be included here. Your dosage, drug form, and how often you take the drug will depend on:
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What If I Forget To Take It
If you forget to take ezetimibe, take it as soon as you remember. If you do not remember until the following day, skip the missed dose and take your next one at the usual time.
Do not take a double dose to make up for a forgotten dose. If you often forget doses, it may help to set an alarm to remind you.
You could also ask a pharmacist for advice on other ways to help you remember to take your medicine.
Before Taking This Medicine
You should not take fenofibrate if you are allergic to it, or if you have:
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severe kidney disease
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liver disease or
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gallbladder disease.
Do not breast-feed while using this medicine, and for at least 5 days after your last dose.
To make sure this medicine is safe for you, tell your doctor if you have ever had:
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kidney disease
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liver disease or
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gallbladder problems.
Fenofibrate can cause the breakdown of muscle tissue, which can lead to kidney failure. This happens more often in women, in older adults, or people who have kidney disease, diabetes, or poorly controlled hypothyroidism .
It is not known whether this medicine will harm an unborn baby. Tell your doctor if you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant.
Fenofibrate is not approved for use by anyone younger than 18 years old.
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Who Can And Cannot Take Ezetimibe
Ezetimibe can be taken by adults and children from the age of 10 years.
Ezetimibe is not suitable for some people. To make sure it is safe for you, tell your doctor if you:
- have had an allergic reaction to ezetimibe or any other medicines in the past
- have liver problems
- are pregnant, planning to become pregnant or are breastfeeding
How Statin Drugs Protect The Heart
More than 200 million people around the world take statin drugs for theirheart health. Shifting ideas about the risks and benefits of statins overthe years, however, have left some new patients confused about whetherthese drugs are rightor safefor them.
Traditionally, statins were viewed as purely cholesterol-lowering drugs. So it made sense just to use them for people with high cholesterol, explains Johns Hopkins cardiologist Michael Blaha, M.D. But weve learned that they also benefit people with lower levels of cholesterol who are at a high risk of heart disease. So we now think of statins as risk-reducing drugs.
This dramatic change in thinking means that people who once were not candidates for statins are now prescribed them to lower their risk of heart attack and stroke.
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What Is A Statin
A statin is a drug that can lower cholesterol by helping your body absorb cholesterol or by blocking a substance your body needs to make it. The American Heart Association cites a global study reporting the benefit of statins to help reduce heart attacks and strokes. Common statins include atorvastatin , pravastatin , rosuvastatin and simvastatin .
Dosage For High Cholesterol Hypertriglyceridemia And Type Iii Hyperlipoproteinemia
Adult dosage
- Typical dosage: 540 mg once daily.
Child dosage
This medication has not been studied in children for this purpose. It should not be used in people younger than 18 years.
Senior dosage
The kidneys of older adults may not work as well as they used to. This can cause your body to process drugs more slowly. As a result, a higher amount of a drug stays in your body for a longer time. This increases your risk of side effects.
Your doctor may start you on a lowered dosage or a different medication schedule. This can help keep levels of this drug from building up too much in your body.
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How Should I Take Fenofibrate
Take fenofibrate exactly as prescribed by your doctor. Follow all directions on your prescription label and read all medication guides or instruction sheets. Your doctor may occasionally change your dose.
Some brands of fenofibrate should be taken with meals to help your body better absorb the medicine. Other brands may be taken with or without food. Follow the directions on your medicine label.
Swallow the tablet or capsule whole and do not crush, chew, dissolve, or open it.
You may need frequent medical tests. Even if you have no symptoms, tests can help your doctor determine if this medicine is effective.
Fenofibrate is only part of a complete program of treatment that may also include diet, exercise, weight control, and other medications. Follow your diet, medication, and exercise routines very closely.
Store at room temperature away from moisture, heat, and light.
The Scoop On Statins: What Do You Need To Know
Why is it important to understand the benefits and risks of statins?
Most heart attacks and strokes are preventable by practicing a healthy lifestyle, and when necessary, taking medications to lower blood pressure or cholesterol or to help quit smoking. Statins, when used as indicated, can dramatically reduce a persons risk of having a heart attack or stroke, but millions of people are missing that opportunity. Some clinicians may miss prescribing a statin to a person who can benefit. Many times, individuals stop or do not start taking a statin due to concerns about side effects. The good news is that understanding your individual benefits and risks and working through your concerns with your clinician can help you prevent heart attacks and strokes and enjoy a longer, healthier life.
What is a statin and how does it work?
Statins are a class of medicines used to lower cholesterol. While some of the cholesterol in your blood comes from food, most is made by the liver. Statins work by reducing the amount of cholesterol made by the liver and helping the liver remove cholesterol that is already in the blood. Statins may also reduce inflammation in the artery walls. This can lead to blockages that damage organs such as the heart and brain.
What are the benefits of statins?
What are the risks of a statin?
How can side effects be managed when taking a statin?
Who should consider taking a statin?
What should I ask my clinician?
Where can I learn more?
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How Should I Take Rosuvastatin Tablets:
- Take the tablets exactly as your doctor tells you to take it.
- Take the tablets by mouth, 1 time each day. Swallow the tablet whole.
- The tablets can be taken at any time of day, with or without food.
- Do not change your dose or stop this medication without talking to your doctor, even if you are feeling well.
- Your doctor may do blood tests to check your cholesterol levels before and during your treatment with rosuvastatin. Your doctor may change your dose of it if needed.
- Your doctor may start you on a cholesterol lowering diet before giving you rosuvastatin. Stay on this diet when you take this medication.
- Wait at least 2 hours after taking rosuvastatin tablets to take an antacid that contains a combination of aluminum and magnesium hydroxide.
Which Drugs Or Supplements Interact With Rosuvastatin
When administered with cyclosporine, the blood level of rosuvastatin increases seven fold, and this could increase the side effects of rosuvastatin.
Rosuvastatin increases the action of the blood thinner warfarin and could increase the risk of bleeding from warfarin.
Antacids reduce the absorption of rosuvastatin and should be administered two hours after rosuvastatin.
The use of rosuvastatin with nicotinic acid, gemfibrozil or other drugs that may cause liver or muscle injury may increase the incidence of the muscle injury.
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What Are The Uses For Rosuvastatin
Rosuvastatin is used for the reduction of blood total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol and triglyceride levels, and to increase HDL cholesterol levels. Rosuvastatin also is used for reducing the risk of heart attacks, stroke, and arterial revascularization procedures in patients without clinically evident coronary heart disease but with multiple risk factors for heart disease.
Combining Drugs That Lower Blood Pressure And Cholesterol Could Do More To Prevent Stroke
Study Highlights:
- Combining medication that lowers blood pressure with medication that lowers cholesterol reduced first-time strokes by 44 percent.
- For those with very high blood pressure readings 143.5 mm Hg or higher taking two types of blood pressure-lowering drugs together every day reduced stroke by 42 percent.
Embargoed until 8 a.m. Pacific Time/11 a.m. Eastern Time, Thursday Jan. 25, 2018
This news release is featured in an embargoed media briefing at 3 p.m. PT Wed., Jan. 24, 2018
LOS ANGELES, Jan. 25, 2018 Combining medication that lowers blood pressure with medication that lowers cholesterol reduced first-time strokes by 44 percent, according to research presented at the American Stroke Associations International Stroke Conference 2018, a world premier meeting dedicated to the science and treatment of cerebrovascular disease for researchers and clinicians.
Seventy-five percent of strokes are first-time strokes. High blood pressure and high cholesterol both increase the risk for stroke, the fifth leading cause of death in America. Yet, its not known whether combining drugs that lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels can protect individuals from stroke.
Now, a study involving 12,705 participants from 21 countries shows that individually, drugs that lower blood pressure or cholesterol do indeed reduce stroke risk, but when combined, they offer even greater protection.
Among the findings:
Presentation location: Room 515A
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Dosage For Heart Disease Prevention
Adult dosage
- Typical dosage: 540 mg once daily.
Child dosage
This medication has not been studied in children for this purpose. It should not be used in children younger than 18 years.
Senior dosage
The kidneys of older adults may not work as well as they used to. This can cause your body to process drugs more slowly. As a result, a higher amount of a drug stays in your body for a longer time. This increases your risk of side effects.
Your doctor may start you on a lowered dosage or a different medication schedule. This can help keep levels of this drug from building up too much in your body.
What Is Rosuvastatin
Rosuvastatin is a prescription drug. It comes in the form of a tablet you take by mouth.
Rosuvastatin is available as the brand-name drug Crestor. Its also available as a generic drug. Generic drugs usually cost less than the brand-name version. In some cases, they may not be available in every strength or form as the brand-name drug.
This drug may be used as part of a combination therapy. This means you may need to take it with other medications.
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What Are Statins
Statins are a class of drugs often prescribed by doctors to help lower cholesterol levels in the blood. By lowering the levels, they help prevent heart attacks and stroke. Studies show that, in certain people, statins reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, and even death from heart disease by about 25% to 35%. Studies also show that statins can reduce the chances of recurrent strokes or heart attacks by about 40%.
How Do They Work
Blood thinners do not actually thin the blood. Instead, they help blood flow smoothly through blood vessels and work to reduce a persons risk of forming blood clots.
Blood thinners do not dissolve or break up existing clots. But they can prevent existing clots from getting larger.
Blood thinners work in different ways. Some act by blocking or weakening vitamin K and its blood clotting effects. Others block proteins or enzymes that bind blood cells and platelets.
One type of blood thinner also works to keep platelets from sticking together or to the walls of blood vessels.
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What Are The Side Effects Of Rosuvastatin
Serious side effects of rosuvastatin include:
- Muscle pain, tenderness and weakness . Muscle problems, including muscle breakdown, can be serious in some people and rarely cause kidney damage that can lead to death. Tell your doctor right away if:
- you have unexplained muscle pain, tenderness, or weakness, especially if you have a fever or feel more tired than usual, while you take this medication.
- you have muscle problems that do not go away even after your doctor has told you to stop taking this medication. Your doctor may do further tests to diagnose the cause of your muscle problems.Your chances of getting muscle problems are higher if you:
- are taking certain other medicines while you take rosuvastatin
- are 65 years of age or older
- have thyroid problems that are not controlled
- have kidney problems
- are taking higher doses of this medication
- nausea
Additional side effects that have been reported with rosuvastatin include memory loss and confusion.
Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or that does not go away.
These are not all the possible side effects. For more information, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
How Should I Take Rosuvastatin Capsules:
- Take the capsules exactly as your doctor tells you to take it.
- Take the capsules by mouth, 1 time each day. Swallow the capsules whole.
- Do not crush or chew the capsules.
- The capsules can be taken at any time of day, with or without food.
- Taking rosuvastatin capsules with soft foodIf you have trouble swallowing a whole capsule, you can open the capsule and take the contents with soft food . See the Instructions for Use that come with your medication for instructions on how to take the capsules with soft food .
- Carefully open the capsules.
- Sprinkle the granules filled in the capsules on 1 teaspoonful of soft food (such as applesauce, or chocolate- or vanilla-flavored pudding.
- Swallow the granules-soft food mixture within 60 minutes. Do not chew the granules.
- Do not save the granules-soft food mixture for later use. Throw away any remaining granules-soft food mixture.
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