Aches and pains - is your statin to blame?
Aches and pains — is your statin to blame?
Muscle pain is the most common side effect of cholesterol-lowering statins.
Peek inside the medicine cabinet of an American over age 50 and you're likely to spy a statin. This family of drugs is good at controlling blood levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), the so-called bad cholesterol. Statins reduce the chances of having a first or repeat heart attack or stroke and of dying prematurely of heart disease. They may also have other benefits that range from easing inflammation to battling memory loss and dementia. The six statins currently on the market are Crestor (rosuvastatin), Lescol (fluvastatin), Lipitor (atorvastatin), Mevacor (lovastatin), Pravachol (pravastatin), and Zocor (simvastatin).
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