On Statins And Cholesterol Level Is Reduced. Wrist And Ankle Are Hurting. Is This Due To Statins?

Posted on Sun, 6 Oct 2013

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sun, 6 Oct 2013 Answered on

Mon, 28 Oct 2013 Last reviewed on

Question : I have always been very active and healthy.DR. put me on statins & cholesterol is down to 89.
my wrists and ankles have REALLY begun to hurt . Do you think it could be the statins?

Answered by Dr. Dr. Ivan Romich (45 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Hi and welcome to XXXXXXX

Detailed Answer:
Not just that I think,but is is probbaly statin since this is known side effect of it. It is now up to you to decide about cost-benefit of these drugs.
Also, not all statines cause muscle and joint pain so you have few options: first, you can try with some other statine, second you can decrease dosage,third: you can take statins together with nonsteroid painkillers or you can stop taking statins which is also justified in cases of intensive joint pain.
After it you can try to reduce cholesterol by changing dietary and lifestyle habits and see will there be improvement. Wish you good health. Feel free to ask. Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar