LIPITOR Reviews (ATORVASTATIN CALCIUM)

Average Rating: 1.9 (1269 Ratings)

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 HYPERLIPIDEMIA

 Type: Rx Drug

  

LIPITOR  (ATORVASTATIN CALCIUM):  Atorvastatin 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: 2000-04-07 (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)

  

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Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.)
5=HIGH (this medicine cured me or helped me a great deal.)

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RATING  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR LIPITORCOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 1  high cholesterol started having muscle pain in upper right side then shoulders neck etc. . unable to walk properly after sitting for a while but the worst is being unable to sleep. These symptoms have developed over the years Have only just come off this drug and hope the symptoms will improve F 59 10 years
40 mg 1X day
4/23/2011
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 1  high triglycerides muscle spasms and pain, joint pain, headaches, memory loss, skin rash, depression, insomnia Although I complained to my doctor about the muscle and joint pain she insisted that I needed to take it so the fat would get out of my liver since my liver enzymes were elevated. F 60 5 years
1X day
3/29/2011
 1  raised colesterol nausea, no sleep, bad dreams,muscle and joint pain, tiredness There must be something better than this. I am going to try POLICOSANOL F 65 3 months
1X day
3/17/2011
 1  High Cholesterol Extended periods of low mood, loss of self-confidence, loss of interest in life etc. also brain fog & impaired memory Increased to 40mg/day in the last 6 months and then stopped taking it after reading of similiar symptoms on this website. After 2 weeks, the symptoms had gone and 8 weeks later they still have not returned. Won't be taking this anymore. M 48 4 years
40 1X day
3/9/2011
 1  cholesteral I have been taking simvostatin for about 5 years,,since March 2010 i have been experiencing pain in my left leg and foot with exteem pain in my ankle and at times i have had dificultly in walking to the point were on some days i could not walk at all because the pain was so bad also had pain in my left arm as if i had strained it lifting but i havn't been lifting, this is not like me because i am normaly very fit and i love walking....doctor refered me to hostpital for xray on my foot which proved normal, after reading some of the threads on here i decided not to take my nightly statin (20m.gr.) Since i decided to give them a miss i find that the pain in my foot is subsiding and i can walk a lot better..i never had this problen with my foot and arm untill i took this drug,I mentioned this to my doctor who said in not many words that i should have no side effects from simvostatin...well i have proved him wrong..I can only hope that having taken this drug for 5 years that not to much d M 71 5 years
20 1X day
3/3/2011
 1  235 total cholesterol Started taking Lipitor 20mg in Feb '08; in Sept '10 experienced stiff, achy joints around shoulders/arms, hips and Achilles tendons. Stopped 1/22/11; slowly feeling less stiff. Can now take shirts off over my head without wincing; not great, but better. F 51 2 years
20mg 1X day
2/11/2011
 1  cholesterol All fine for first five weeks and then...increasing pain and stiffness at left knee. Attributed to running 15 miles per week, two 60 minute spin classes weekly, resistance training etc.. Symptoms worsened, swelling at knee, drained 25 cc fluid. Orothopedic consult; x rays and MRI revealed no abnormality. Symptoms worsend and spread to right knee. After two weeks of problems, skipped one dose of Lipitor. 36 hours after last dose, symptoms abated. 48 hours later symptoms nearly gone. MD confirms decision to discontinue entirely. Lipitor did bring my cholesterol from 235 to 175. Bloodwork indicated no liver or muscle enzyme abnormilities after 7 weeks but those results are not worth the symptoms. Switching to "Choleast" an over the counter red rice yeast formula M 60 7 weeks
10 mg 1X day
2/2/2011
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 1  high cholesterol Severe pain & cramping in ankles, feet arches & back Muscle weakness & atrophy–unable to exercise Weak & “wobbley” ankles, knees & wrists Cramping in wrists & hands Rib cage tightness Constant fatigue Insomnia requiring a sleep lab study (which concluded that I have “insomnia”) Mental fogginess & forgetfulness Pancreatitis, requiring mri & biopsies Elevated liver enzymes–attributed to “fatty liver” Chest tightness & breathlessness requiring 3 day hospitalization for cardiac stress test & catherization & lung tests–negative Difficulty swallowing & swelling in throat requiring referrals to a gastro-enterologist & an ear, nose, & throat specialist: allergy testing, swallowing study x-rays, cat scan, upper GI scope with dilation of esophagus & biopsies, and finally larynx scope & biopsies-all negative Swollen nasal passages requiring sinus cat scan–negati They never made any mention of adding Co Q 10. Over the years, I had previously been prescribed steroid nasal sprays, allegra (even though tests showed no allergies), nexium, cough medicine, sinus irrigation, & various sleeping pills to deal with what I now know was my reaction to statins. Nothing helped alleviate these symptoms. Besides the toll that statins have taken on my quality of life, I’ve also spent tens of thousands of dollars on doctors, drugs, tests, labs, & procedures. I even purchased a sleep number bed & a new sofa, thinking that would help my insomnia & back pain. All to no avail. My symptoms slowly crept up during my 15 years of statin use. Just 2 years ago, I walked 4 miles a day, or rode my bike for 45 minutes a day. I did a 20 minute Pilates machine workout 4 or 5 times a week. I went from being energetic & very active to being unable to even do my own grocery shopping. Since my daughter will be having her 2nd child in 3 months & will need my help & since I was afraid that I would be wheel chair bound by then if my symptoms kept worsening, I stopped taking Lipitor 12 days ago & I began improving slightly by the 3rd day. I informed my doctor, who was not happy-he now wants me to “try” pravachol! Now 12 days post-lipitor, the hot flashes & night sweats are gone entirely. I am sleeping 5-6 hours at night, instead of 3-4. The weakness in my legs & back when climbing steps is lessening. My arm muscles st F 61
1X day
1/27/2011
 1  cholesterol initially noticed twitching in thighs thought because im a rn it was just in my mind 5 wks into pain in ankle to point i couldnt walk went to podiatrist who ive seen for plantar fascitits and was told bones in foot collapsing mechanical problem not lipitor made orthotics put on nsaid no reief got orthotics and now on medrol dose pack having mri tommarrow will never take again was a big lipitor fan before started on studies showed helped alzheimers now would never reccomend and have talked to numerous people who had problems F 53
10 1X day
1/10/2011
 1  cholesterol Fatigue, Brain Fog, Stuttering, Bad OCD! I am diabetic and my numbers weren't horrible but they want you below 100 - this drug and the statins they tried on me were not worth it at all. F 56 3 weeks
10 mg 1X day
12/27/2010
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 1  Cholestoral I did not link my problems to the Lipitor until my husband had major problems, now I know what has caused 10 years of Neuropathy, I have "Burning feet" always in bed at night, I do not have Diabetes (which would cause this) and was tested in DC at WRAMC and they found no reason that I should have this and gave me a tube of Capsacian!!! I still live with this. Four years ago I developed "Frozen Shoulder" in my left arm, unbelievable pain, within weeks the other shoulder became as painful as the first, could not raise my arms at all, tested at Bethesda Naval Hosp., no reason found, I was told it would last about 2 years unless I took therapy sessions, I took the sessions and begged for someone to put me out of my misery each time, it eventually passed in about a year but I still have shoulder pain. Today I am stopping the Lipitor, maybe I have read too much on the subject but the one that really scares me is the Memory Loss, All the drug com. tests were done to see how well the Statins did for Cholesterol and the heart benefits, but no testing (or none that the consumer was told of) was ever done to see how it effects the brain function. Memory is too precious a thing to lose to a drug! F 65 10 years
10-40mg 1X day
12/26/2010
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 1  mildly elevated total cholesterol developed parkinson's disease. discovered thru 23andme DNA profiling I possess a mutation in a gene, SLCO1B1, that codes a transport protein responsible for moving statins into the liver to be detoxified. Studies have noted patients with greatly incrased plasma statin levels (>134% and AUCs more than 400% ABOVE NORMAL) toxic levels indeed. The neurological damage I have suffered due to toxic levels of lipitor seems to be permanent. Nothing I have tried has reversed the extreme symptoms. in the beginning megadoses of coenzyme Q10 did help; that was 6 yrs ago. the deterioration continues. the slco1b1 mutation IS NOT rare, occurring in 26-34% of caucasian poulation, less in african am, and more in Asian pop. seems many individuals with the mutation(s) develop severe myalgias and myopathies, prompting discontinuance of the statin. for those of us who did not suffer the muscle dmaage, neurodegeneration is what occurs in my opinion. Am aware of 7 other indicviduals who feel they are sufferring same effects as I from a fat soluble statin M 66 4 years
10 mgm per 1X day
11/19/2010
 1  high cholesterol Had muscle pain in my back (primarily small of my back) and down my leg. I had tried Lipitor before and the result was achy legs. After some time off of this drug and feeling better, I tried it again. My back hurt so bad that I went to a chiropractor twice and no relief. I thought I might have a bulging disc but decided to go off the Lipitor again. After two months, I'm back to normal. I call this the drug from hell. F 68
10 MG 1X day
11/18/2010
 1  high lipids Stopped because of HIGH CPK.My Liver blood test are also mildly elevated. I was in deniel that the statins would cause ME side effects- I have Terrible muscle and joint pain, Burning sensations in neck shoulders and upper chest. Palpatations . Insomnia because can not sleep from pain. I do not want to take pain killers all the time since they have side effects too. Weight gain -probably not associated. IOne of the reasons I left my job is because I was so weak all the time and had difficulty walking and driving. I was a Sales rep for a drug company and many years ago I promoted Zocor. How IRONIC that I should suffer from statins my self. My life is miserable. I feel like dying. I am sorry I did not keep my weight low so as to avoid my lipids to go so high. That way I would have never had to suffer like I am now. The doctors just say and my husband OH your in pain because you are over weight. The doctors also did not even follow me up properly. WHo can I sue?????? That is the question. F 49 3 years
20 mg 1X day
11/9/2010
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 1  cholesterol was high F 50 60 days
10 mg 1X day
11/3/2010
 1  hyperlipidemia as determined pharma M 66 4 years
10mg/day 1X day
10/31/2010
Patient History
 1  hypercholesterolemia Lipitor had the same side effects as Zocor and confirmed that Zocor caused myalgia, neuralgia, insomnia, dementia, polyneuropathy, rhabdomyolisis, subdural hematoma, coma, and pain, pain pain. Lipitor seems to cause even more nerve damage than Zocor. Before they go to Hell, the people at Pfizer and the doctors who shill for them should be sent to a very nasty prison. Pfizer and its doctor salesmen should be stripped of every asset including their medical licenses. They should be totally destroyed. The proceeds of their financial liquidation should be distributed to their victims. M 63 4 months
20 1X day
10/23/2010
 1  Plaque buildup not cholesterol Indigestion, intense heart pain, sore muscles, anxious, restless, lack of sleep. Has anyone had severe chest pain? I have loss the will to do anything...no sleep, emotional, just plain want to give up... F 61 30 days
10 1X day
10/17/2010
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 1  high cholesterol It either caused or gave me peripheral neuropathy in my hands, arms, feet and legs. And it damaged my liver. No one should ever take a statin. It should be taken off the market. F 67 4 years
?? 1X day
10/9/2010
 1  High Colesterol First the doc thought I had gastritis from pain in my abdomen, headaches, flushing - I had an abdominal ultrasound, endoscopy, then CT scans (2) and then yesterday an MRI - all were normal. The fatigue, muscle pain, headaches, and general malaise continue. I am taking myself off this drug and hope that my apparently healthy body recovers. Why is my doctor unaware of the Lipitor side effects? Why did I spend almost $1,000 of my own money AFTER insurance on all these tests without considering that my symptoms match those for Lipitor? So frustrating! I will check back in and document how I feel in a month. F 64 5 years
40 1X day
9/17/2010
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