Getting the Most from Your Statin Medicine
By Helene Bichel,
Doctor of Pharmacy Candidate, 2002
Bernard J. Dunn School of Pharmacy, Shenandoah University
Winchester, Virginia
Heart disease is the number
one killer of adults in the US. New studies show that a group
of medicines called statins, that lower cholesterol, may be
able to help people with heart disease. At a recent meeting
of the American Heart Association the results from two important
studies were presented. A large British study found that taking
a statin might help almost anyone who has a chance of getting
heart disease live longer. However, another study at a Cleveland
clinic showed that many people who are taking statins do not
get the helpful effect that doctors think they should.
How can taking a statin
help more people with heart disease live longer? Why aren’t
doctors seeing the effect they should when people are prescribed
a statin medicine? And what can people taking statins do to
get the most from their medicine?
How Statins Can Help
New guidelines from the National Cholesterol Education Program
(NCEP) point out that lowering cholesterol can help lower the
chance of having a heart attack caused by heart disease. The
British study helped to prove this. Heart disease can be caused
by a build-up of cholesterol in the blood vessels of the heart.
This build-up is called plaque. The main cause of a heart attack
is when plaque breaks and blocks blood flow to the heart.
Statins work in several
ways to help keep this from happening. They help the liver make
less cholesterol and help it remove cholesterol from the blood.
They also stop the plaque in vessels from forming so fast. And,
they make the plaque smaller and less likely to break. In this
way, statins can help some people with heart disease avoid a
heart attack.
Why Some People Don’t
Get the Benefit
Why don’t some of the people already taking the medicine
get the help the doctors think they should? One of the main
reasons is that many people find it hard to fit taking a medicine
into their busy lives.
If you have trouble remembering
to take your medicine, there are some things you can do to help
you remember. Try to fit taking your medicine into a daily routine.
For instance, you can take it with dinner or at bedtime. And
you can use reminders, like setting the alarm on a watch or
clock. Once the medicine has been taken, a mark on a calendar
will show that you took it that day.
What About Side Effects?
The side effects that come along with taking medicines could
be another reason that people don’t take the medicine every
day. Side effects may vary from one brand of statin to another.
Most side effects are mild, and go away as your body adjusts
to the medicine. Some more common side effects you may notice
include headache and stomach upset. For headache, your doctor
can tell you what medicine is okay to take. And eating something
when you take your medicine might help calm an upset stomach.
Rarely, taking a statin
medicine can cause muscle aches and pain. Sometimes the muscle
ache that is caused by a statin is mild. But muscle pain could
be the sign of a more serious problem. If left untreated, it
can lead to kidney damage and even death. Only your doctor can
tell the difference between a muscle problem that is mild and
one that is more serious. Anyone taking a statin medicine with
any unexplained muscle weakness, muscle pain, muscle tenderness
or unusual tiredness should talk to the doctor right away. Your
doctor can do tests to see if the problem is mild or serious
and decide what treatment, if any, is necessary.
Taking some other medicines
when you on a statin medicine may make it more likely that side
effects will occur. This is especially true for the side effect
involving the muscles. Anyone taking a statin should talk to
the doctor or pharmacist before taking any other medicine. This
includes those that can be bought over the counter as well as
prescription medicines.
I Don’t Need to Take It Anymore
People with high cholesterol might not have symptoms that remind
them to take their medicine every day. Taking their statin every
day might not change the way they feel at all. Or it could even
make them feel worse if they have side effects. How do they
know the medicine is working? This might be another reason that
people don’t take it every day.
The only way to find out if your cholesterol
is coming down is to have a blood test. Check with the doctor
to find out when to have a blood test done. And keep a record
of the results of your cholesterol tests. This will show you
how well the statin is working over time.
Taking a Pill
is Not All It Takes
The studies have shown that statins can help some people who
have heart disease live longer. But taking a pill is not all
that it takes. There are many things you can do to help yourself.
The NCEP offers these tips
-
Lose weight if you are overweight.
-
Eat a healthy diet, low in cholesterol and
fats.
-
Exercise 30-60 minutes a day, at least 3 days
a week.
-
Check with your doctor before planning and
starting any exercise program.
-
Have your blood pressure checked, and work
with your doctor to control it.
-
If you have diabetes, work with your doctor
to control your blood sugar. People with diabetes have
-
the same chance of having a heart attack as
people with heart disease.
-
If you smoke cigarettes, try to find a way
to quit.