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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Severe Muscle Pain After Taking Crestor And Zetia?

Hi. My name is Gary. I have tried Crestor and now Zetia to help control my cholesterol. Under Crestor, taken for quite a long time, I developed muscle and body aches and pains. My Doctor suggested that we try Zetia to see if we could eliminate the soreness. After a number of months, I still have soreness in the upper biceps area of both arms, the right one being more prominent. Reading write-ups on both drugs, I find that soreness is common to both of them, to which I can agree. Is there any cholesterol controlling medicine that will not have this soreness as a byproduct?
posted on Fri, 24 Mar 2017
Twitter Tue, 9 May 2017 Answered on
Twitter Tue, 9 May 2017 Last reviewed on
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Diabetologist,  's  Response
Crestor (rosuvastatin) is a statin and muscle aches are one of the common side effect. Zetia (ezetimibe) is not a statin and incidence of muscle aches are uncommon with this drug.
Cholesterol lowering agent that does not have muscle aches as side effects are bile acid sequestrates like cholestyramine and colesevelam. But they have a higher incidence of gastrointestinal side effects.
Other drugs that lower lipids like niacin and fibrates can cause muscle aches. But can be given a trial.
If you were my patient, then I would look at vitamin D levels before considering the medication change now. Vitamin D deficiency can also lead to muscle aches and is also a common cause.
I hope the above information helps you. Thanks for writing into healthcare magic.
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What Causes Severe Muscle Pain After Taking Crestor And Zetia?

Crestor (rosuvastatin) is a statin and muscle aches are one of the common side effect. Zetia (ezetimibe) is not a statin and incidence of muscle aches are uncommon with this drug. Cholesterol lowering agent that does not have muscle aches as side effects are bile acid sequestrates like cholestyramine and colesevelam. But they have a higher incidence of gastrointestinal side effects. Other drugs that lower lipids like niacin and fibrates can cause muscle aches. But can be given a trial. If you were my patient, then I would look at vitamin D levels before considering the medication change now. Vitamin D deficiency can also lead to muscle aches and is also a common cause. I hope the above information helps you. Thanks for writing into healthcare magic.