PRAVACHOL Reviews (PRAVASTATIN SODIUM)Average Rating: 2.2 (228 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare PRAVACHOL with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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Results are sorted by length of time drug was taken from shortest to longest duration (reviews with no time reported listed first). Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) |
More on PRAVACHOL: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR PRAVACHOL | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 4 | Get my cholesterol down | No side effect, and no problems what so ever for the muscle. Beter as Lypitor or Zochor. | Very good iof you like doing sport or walking or byking, you can do with Pravachol no pain on your muscle, or join. | M | 64 | 40MG 1X day | 5/10/2011 | 3 | high LDL | I've been taking adjusts drug for over a year now. It has reduced mt LDL choles. I've always had good HDL & triglyceride number. about two weeks ago I began having achy legs, pain in both hands, headaches & shoulder soreness. I even considered being tested for Lyme dz. All of a sudden it occurred to me that it could be the pravachol. I will stop it immediately and see if these symptoms go away. | F | 65 | 40mgs 1X day | 5/24/2012 | 2 | Moderate cholestrol | M | 74 | 20mg 1X day | 12/1/2011 Patient History | 1 | high cholesterol | Muscle pain. Tired all the time. Joints hurt so badly. My left shoulder very painful, feels like a cuff tear. Cant lift arm above my head because its very painful. My elbow is very painful and tight. Cant straighten it out. My toes are starting to hurt when walking. nausea. Restless night. Pain wakes me up several times at night. Hands, wrist hurt as if i have severe arthritis but I dont. I stopped tonight taking it 03-28-2015. I pray these horrible, painful, debilitating symptoms stop! so I can have my life back. | F | 58 | 20mg 1X day | 3/28/2015 | 3 | Genetics heart and cholesterol | I've been taking 30 plus years. My LDL overal cholesterol are down but so is my good cholesterol. I have high triglycerides still. I feel like my muscles are shrinking. I've begun a vitamin regime including coQ10. Now there's lots of bad news on statins. I don't want a heart attack or stroke but I'm afraid of the other potential side effects. What will maintain my heart and arteries without the side effects of statins. My fathers side of the family died of heart problems. Dad was 54. My sister had a quadruple bypass at about 60. Dad died at 54 My sis just died at 76. So far I've missed the bullet and have been a smoker. How much coenzyme 10 should I take? I feel I MUST need it. If you are not a professional with proper medical background, please do not contact me and scare me. Isn't 30 years on this drug damaging? | F | 66 | 1 days 40 | 4/23/2012 | 3 | High Ch | None | None | M | 48 | 1 days | 1/31/2005 | 2 | to lower chlosteral,inc hdl | minor headaches and pain in back of head | I was on lipitor 40mg for 2 years and chl. levels were improved and periodic blood work was very good.Recently experienced muscle pain in AM and stopped lipitor for 1month and chl. readings including hdl and ldl went very bad.Dr. switched me to pravastatin 80 mg and am now getting head pain(never had headaches).I am now cutting the pills in 1/2 and will see what happens and will go for bloodwork in 2 weeks.I do not have muscle aches but the head pain is the substitute. | M | 64 | 1 days | 7/29/2008 | 1 | Cholesterol reduction | Severe dizzyness, neck and joint aches and overall weakness | Dont | 57 | 2 days 40 mg | 9/14/2015 | 4 | high cholesterol | is it possible??? Very unusual, offensive body odor..only when sweating, heavily or working out... {we live in Florida}. My wife notices it daily...could it be the drug? The only thing diffferent since I have been taking the medication...also some body aches..but I am very active. | ...has lowered my cholesterol without altering my life style. | M | 61 | 3 days | 7/11/2006 | 3 | High Cholesterol | Immediate weight gain?? I weighed 128 on Wednesday morning and took my first dose of this drug Wednesday night at bedtime. As always, I weighed myself in the morning and weighed 133. I know that I did not eat like a crazy woman and did not eat any more than usual. I am down to 131 two days later but that still is higher than it should be. Anyone else ever experience this? | Not sure if this is going to work. A 5 pound weight gain overnight is not a good start. | F | 54 | 3 days | 8/9/2009 | 2 | high cholesterol | Painful stomach cramps and diarrhea | Jury is still out on this. I took one 40 mg pill for 3 consecutive nights. Late in day 3 I had awful cramps & diarrhea - now I'm worried about taking more pills. I am going to wait a week and try again to see if something else caused this. I admit I am very suspicious of the pravachol, but since my cholesterol is on the high side I will give it another chance. | F | 56 | 3 days | 3/19/2007 | 1 | High chloresterol | extreme lower leg and back pain, severe leg cramps, tingling in legs and feet. | stopped medication after 3 days but muscle pain, cramps and tingling of legs and feet continues after a full month after coming off medication. | M | 62 | 3 days 40 1X day | 7/12/2012 | 1 | Borderline high cholesterol | I was initially given Lovastatin for borderline high cholesterol (222) after I went through menopause. Within two days I started to fell queasy and very tired. I continued to take it for two months and never felt well. My doctor switched me to Pravachol as an alternative when I complained about side effects. I had only taken this medication three days when I noticed severe head pain on the top of my head (like it was going to explode!) and facial pain. A day later my BP which had always been very good shot up to 182/102, I developed nausea, pain in my left arm and diarrhea. Went to the ER and NO cause for this could be found. I quit taking Pravachol that day and the next day my BP was lower and, on the third day without it, my BP was 114/80. I haven't had a headache since and feel SO MUCH BETTER. I am going to lose 30 lbs., start doing Pilates again and keep taking fish oil, olive oil, and eating avocados which have brought my cholesterol and triglyceride levels down before meno | I believe I had severe side effects from Pravachol very soon after the initiation of taking it - probably more so than the average person, but I would WARN anyone to be very careful about taking this particular medication and start with a very low dosage - I was only given 10mg to start and still had what I believe were severe side effects very soon after starting it. I feel fine now - no more head pain, face pain or diarrhea. Seems pretty conclusive that Pravachol was THE CAUSE! | F | 57 | 3 days | 9/3/2006 | 1 | high cholesterol | Leg pain and cramps, acid reflux | I have only been on this medicine for 3 days and I already have leg pain that keeps me awake at night. My stomach also feels worse than before taking the pravachol. I am only taking 10 mg as I stopped another statin, lipitor, three years ago due to the same problems but after my recent coronary blockage repair the cardiologist said I have to lower my cholesterol and that means back on statins. I have been taking 2 grams of niacin for the last three years but apparently that didn't prevent my recent double-stent angioplasty. | M | 55 | 3 days | 1/1/2010 | 1 | Elevated cholesterol (252) | After one day, my co-workers were asking me what was wrong. My eyes were bleary, and I had no energy. I feel completely "blah," as if I can't get up enough energy to do anything. I've already brought my cholesterol down from 300 to 250 through diet and exercise, but I have a feeling that the weight gain and cholesterol are from the Zoloft I take for panic disorder (I've had it since I was 18, and the SSRIs have been a lifesaver, despite their problems). | M | 47 | 3 days | 12/11/2007 | 1 | Coronary Calcium Score | Severe migraine, insomnia, stomach pain, nausea, diarrhea, extreme weakness- couldn’t hold my head up | There has to be a better way than all these poisonous drugs | F | 46 | 3 days 10mg | 4/26/2018 | 2 | high cholesterol | weight gain, lethargy, pain, depression? and memory loss | has anyone noticed a weight loss after going off Pravachol? | F | 54 | 4 days | 5/6/2007 | 1 | Hi Cholesterol | Severe pain in calf. Felt like a grapefruit knot in calf. Went to ER for pain medicine and check for clot. Better today and will not take any more statins. I had soreness with other statins but nothing like this. Done. | M | 52 | 4 days 40 mg | 10/12/2012 | 2 | Cholesterol 311 | Flu like symptoms, muscle weakness, headache and blurred vision. | Took Lipitor for years and Doctors told me the muscle/joint pain was arthritis. Left my pills at home during our vacation and in just a week felt like my old self. New Physician ordered Pravachol 40mg. Began on Tuesday morning and on Friday, thought I had the flu July. The body aches were bad around my shoulders and neck, and the headache was terrrible, but the worst was the mental fog. I am an RN and had to work in a fog and every little thing made me cry. I stopped them and in 36 hours feel much better. I may try them again for anther week, but it won't be when I have to work. Very dangerous!! | F | 60 | 5 days | 7/8/2007 | 1 | LDL- 150 | at first flu-like symptoms,dizziness,fatigue and then anxiety and depression. | will not ever take again. There has got to be a better way to control cholesterol. Shame on the drug companies. They need to come up with medicine that doesn't have so many side effects!! I think my cholesterol is hereditary. I am 5ft.3in. and 140lbs. and I exercise and eat sensibly. | F | 37 | 5 days | 3/29/2009 |
PRAVACHOL (PRAVASTATIN SODIUM): Pravastatin is used along with a proper diet to help lower "bad" cholesterol and fats (such as LDL, triglycerides) and raise "good" cholesterol (HDL) in the blood. It belongs to a group of drugs known as "statins." It works by reducing the amount of cholesterol made by the liver. Lowering "bad" cholesterol and triglycerides and raising "good" cholesterol decreases the risk of heart disease and helps prevent strokes and heart attacks. In addition to eating a proper diet (such as a low-cholesterol/low-fat diet), other lifestyle changes that may help this medication work better include exercising, losing weight if overweight, and stopping smoking. Consult your doctor for more details. FDA Approval Date: 2001-12-18 (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)