NIASPAN Reviews (NIACIN)Average Rating: 2.7 (694 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare NIASPAN with similar:
Type: Rx Drug
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Results are sorted by Date added. Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 |
More on NIASPAN: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR NIASPAN | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 3 | high cholesterol | flushing, prickling, red heat about 30-45 min after taking it. resolved that by taking 81 mg aspirin 30 min before taking niaspan right before bedtime. | dropped cholesterol and lipids a reasonable but not spectacular amount. had to stop b/c developed a full time burning itch on my chest and neck. has been one week since stopped and still have somewhat of an itch and neck/chest feel like i have a sunburn (tight skin) | F | 41 | 75 days 1000mg 1X day | 1/25/2011 | 3 | Low HDL | My HDL is 32. I was nervous about taking Niaspan because of all the side effects I heard about using it. So I took 500 mg of flush-free niacin for a year. Since my doctor wasn't pleased with the 32 HDL, he put me on 1000 mg of Niaspan daily. So far, so good. I eat a piece of wheat bread with half a raw apple at about 9:00 P.M. At 10:00, I take the 325 mg aspirin. At 10:30-10:45, I take the Niaspan. I wake up a lot but have not had the flushing to speak of. I am tired during the day but I don't know if that is from the Niaspan or from not sleeping a lot at night. I get my blood test in 3 weeks. I doubt my HDL will rise in only 3 weeks of use but I am hoping. I have no idea if the no-flush niacin for a year made my adaptation to Niaspan easier but again, so far, so good. | M | 59 | 6 days 1000 1X day | 1/23/2011 | 1 | cholesterol | debilitating head ache | I began having head aches and was being treated by the Dr. MRI of my brain. Stopped taking it and they went away. Tried it again and had a head ache the next day. Throw them away. | M | 45 | 2 months 2X day | 1/23/2011 | 2 | to bump up HDL | flushing, insomnia, anxiety, dizziness. I took it for at least 3 months at 500mg ( soon after my heart attack and angioplasty thereafter)without even the slightest change in HDL(27). Doc increased the doze to 1500 but at 1000mg the symptoms were practically intolerable with anxiety, dizziness as I couldn't even drive a car and I just gave up. I subsequently tried few times after few months but each time couldn't tolerate dosage over 500mg (Below 500mg I could tolerate well but it has no benefit for me. | After about 10 months, as my HDL has not changed a bit, doc again wants me to try out as this is the only option which can probably work. The side effects are only severe flushing for now which happens every night but tolerable and luckily no anxiety/dizziness for now. Hoping to see some improvement in HDL. (Currently :LDL 60 Total Col 110, TRig 80 HDL 32) | M | 40 | 90 days 500mg 3X day | 1/18/2011 | 3 | high cholesterol | worsening of back pain, restles legs at night worse, insomnia worsening and of coarse the flush but If I time the aspirin just right( 20 to 40 min before) that is minimized. It is a very painful pins in the skin feeling as well as the heat component | I have all these problems occasionally( except the flushing) but Niaspan seems to be making them all worse. | M | 59 | 2 months 500.mg 1X day | 1/16/2011 | 3 | High Cholesterol and Triglycerides | occasional Flushing | It's working fine. Cholesterol is 152, Tiglycerides 85, HDL 56, LDL 79. I just don't like the flushing. I take 81mg aspirin 1 hour before but it doesn't help. Keeps me awake even when I'm tired. any suggestions. | M | 67 | 4 months 500mg 1X day | 1/14/2011 | 3 | cholesterol levels | Doc warned me about flushing so I always take with aspirin. had experienced some mild flushes in the first couple months (prickling starts in earlobes, goes down neck and upper chest). Last night had an EXTREME case of flushing. Was woken at midnight from a deep sleep, my whole body was on fire. Usually its just upper body, but this time my whole body (including backside and legs) were insanely hot, prickly and BRIGHT red all over. Also, my lower face/lips/chin were oddly swollen and itchy. These effects lasted over an hour. Even the next day, my earlobes still feel hot and prickly. | If I hadn't already known this was a side-effect of Niaspan, I would have gone to the emergency room, convinced something was seriously wrong. It has made my cholesterol levels better, but the extreme flushing is scary and I'm starting to think it may not be worth it to keep taking the prescription. | F | 42 | 6 months 500mg 1X day | 1/14/2011 | 1 | Lower cholesterol | Could not sleep. Tenitis. Ears seemed stopped up. Sensed a loss of hearing,though not tested. Had indigestion sensation every evening. | My total cholesterol is under 125. Hospital physician wanted it lower b/c of susceptibility to stroke. After I stopped ,I sought advice from two other doctors who's were surprised that it was prescribed. Try something else. | M | 66 | 7 days 750 1X day | 1/14/2011 | 4 | Increase HDL | Occasional flushing shortly after taking the NIASPAN (at night) and infrequently in the AM when I drink a cup of coffee. In all cases this is reduced by an Aspirin does prior to the medication. The NIASPAN does hold up my HDL levels well even on a very reduced fat diet. It does appear to increase skin dryness and sensitivity, especially in winter, but a slight increase in fat intake and a good cream makes this possible side effect minimal. Taking Statins, NIASPAN and Zetia all in the PM, shot my liver enzymes to 2.5x normal but moving the Zetia to the AM ( which is a better timing anyway) removed this side effect. Since my TGs are very low to start with and the other drugs I take target mostly my LDLs, it is not feasible to measure what the impacts were on LDLs or TGs in my case. The rest of my family did not tolerate NIASPAN ( or niacin in general ) very well and had to reduce or stop the treatment since the flushing was so severe and extended. | Since I am on a shotgun treatment, I do have to split the dosing of the drugs AM/PM to avoid impacting my liver enzymes. Since almost all of the cholesterol drugs do have impacts on the liver, you should be aware of this and monitor how you react to the timing and combination of the multiple drugs and ensure that you do perform the periodic testing of hepatic enzymes especially if the timing and combination of drugs is changed. | M | 54 | 5 years 2000 1X day | 1/13/2011 | 2 | Low HDL | I usually get the "burn" that lasts from 2-4 hours about once every month and a half. But last night I had extreme burn (my skin was beet red) and extreme itching on my legs. It was almost unbearable. I think I may go off this. | M | 39 | 1 years 1X day | 1/13/2011 | 1 | Insanely high triglicerides | Experienced the 'flushing' right away, although it feels more like needles trying to poke through my face: VERY uncomfortable to say the least, and yes, I take a 325mg aspirin app 30 minutes beforehand. I have always said I could fall asleep any where, any time, but since starting Niaspan, no matter how tired I am, I have a lot of trouble falling asleep, and I take an anti anxiety medication to help me sleep. But the worst side effect is that it is triggering NASTY flare ups of my UC. My UC HAD been in remission for years, but since I started the Niaspan it's back with a vengance. | With all the comments I have read here, in combination with my own nasty side effect experiences, I am stopping the use of this medication RIGHT NOW, and will contact my cardiologist in the morning to see if she's got any better ideas. Thank you ask a patient.com for this forum. It has been a huge help!!! | M | 55 | 30 days 500mg 1X day | 1/11/2011 | 3 | tryglicerides/cholesterol | flushing, itching, burning, swelling | This stuff has bothered me from time to time with the usual complaints. But tonite, my face swelled up. I could feel it swelling. I looked in the mirror and it looked like I'd put on 100#! I won't be taking it anymore. | F | 53 | 8 days 500g 1X day | 1/9/2011 | 1 | cholesterol | I had no idea what the side effects are. About two months ago my lower legs got red and itched and the skin is so dry. The itching is unbearable at times and I scratch and omg it feelsso good and not good to do and then I break the skin open. I am having trouble sleeping even though Im tired when I go to bed. I have a bad knee but both calves are sore and I do have gas which I never had before. I am gonna stop this drug and see if there is improvement in what is going on. | If this is causing my problem or even part of it it makes me so angry. All my dr does is give me another pill if I complain. | F | 74 | 6 months 1500 1X day | 1/8/2011 | 3 | yes | I've been taking Niaspan for over 6 months now starting at 1000MG and increasing to 2000MG per day for the last 6 weeks. Beside minimal flusing, I suspect I have devolope varicose veine (the veines look crunchy and appear in my lower legs). I'm asking if anyone have experienced the same thing. I'm not sure if it the Niaspan sideefffect. Please, email me at [email protected] Thank very much, | Taking for high Trigo and Low HDL | M | 48 | 6 months 2000 1X day | 1/1/2011 | 3 | high cholesterol | Niacin "flush" is a misnomer, it should be called "burn". I feel like I'm on fire and it's quite painful. I take aspirin prior to the Niaspan. Thankfully the burn happens only once every couple of months. Next lab work in three weeks. We'll see if it's working then. | I put my husband on regular niacin and his cholesterol went down drastically--his doctor is very happy. Another added benefit is that he's had the "flush" a couple of times and he now understands just a little bit what hot flashes are like. | F | 50 | 360 days 500 1X day | 1/1/2011 | 1 | cholesterol | never had any flushing problems that i was aware of woke up on the 13th day and had lost hearing in my left ear seemed clogged went to ent who said i had a viral infection immediately put me on heavy prednisone after 2 hearing tests and an MRI he told me i had permanent hearing loss. Neither the ent or my primary told me to get off the niaspan so after my ear was pronounced deaf i went off it myself. the next day i started to recover my hearing and after 8 days without the poison its almost fully recovered. this stuff is poison | M | 57 | 19 days 500mg 1X day | 1/1/2011 | 1 | to lower trigs. | extreme itching still a year later, Can not sleep without sleeping medication and that does not always work. | worst medicine on the market | M | 64 | 1 years 500 mg 1X day | 12/29/2010 | 1 | high colestoral | Niaspan caused me itching,palpitations,hot to cold,lite headedness,vision problems,knee pain,an irrigular EKG,3wks B for stoping niaspan a shooting,throbing pain in right arm I couldn't take these side effects C.Williams 12-29-10 | F | 48 | 2 months 1500 1X day | 12/29/2010 | 5 | High Cholesterol | Initially had mild itching for about 20 min. Cardiologist prescribed 325 mg. Aspirin 1 Hour before taking Niaspan. (81mg of Aspirin is too low of a dose). And then take 1 serving size of Applesauce (3.5oz.)with the pill, at bedtime. The Pectin in Applesauce helps reduce the itching affect. | If you can handle the side effects for about the first week or so. Then I believe it's working | M | 50 | 4 months 1000mg 1X day | 12/24/2010 | 5 | Bad lipid numbers | flushing, itching- the usual. | I think everyone over 40 should take niacin, unless you're a strict vegetarian or the side effects are too great to overcome. Persistence, folks!! Lots of babies who give up quite easily because it's "too hard". Brought my ldl from 175 to 105. Lpa from 33 to 5 Hdl up 20%. I take 2 gms slo-niacin (same thing) at bedtime. I feel only minor flushing occasionally. | M | 45 | 1 years 2 grams 1X day | 12/23/2010 |