Lake Champlain Cardiology Associates
52 Tom Miller Rd., Plattsburgh, NY 12901 (518) 563-2404
www.lccahearts.com
Treatment Options for People Unable to Use Statins
Currently statins are the class of medicines used most for treatment of high cholesterol and to prevent heart attacks. There is good reason for this – the scientific evidence in support of their use is exceedingly strong – amongst the strongest for any medical treatment available today.
However, some people can’t take statins. They may have minor side effects, such as muscle pains or very mild abnormalities in blood tests for the liver. Others have more severe problems, such as serious muscle or liver disease, nerve injury, or other unusual problems.
There are several recommendations to try to deal with these problems. People who have only minor side effects can try another statin. Sometimes the addition of Coenzyme Q-10 or Vitamin D may allow for the relief of these troublesome side effects. If that doesn’t work, I have often had excellent results using a powerful long-acting statin like rosuvastatin (Crestor) in low doses 2-3 times/week. Often over time the dose can be gradually increased. However, even if the dose remains low it can have very beneficial effects on cholesterol levels.
For those people who cannot take even low dose of statins, we redouble efforts to adjust diet, exercise, lose weight, and quit smoking. There are other classes of medications available, including niacin, resins, ezetimibe and fibrates. These may all be tried, if necessary. Unfortunately, scientific evidence to date indicates that these medicines are not as effective as the statins. There are some data that red yeast rice may be effective (note that one of the ingredients in red yeast rice is the statin lovastatin). Garlic, whether naturally or in pill form, is not useful. You can’t trust everything Larry King says.