5. The cholesterol-lowering action of alternate-day statins is as effective as daily dosing in many individuals. 6. To maintain the same degree of decrease in LDL-C when giving the statins on alternate days, the dose of the statins frequently needs to be increased.
Atorvastatin every other day significantly reduced total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), and LDL-c versus baseline. The TC, TG, and LDL-c levels were lower by 23 per cent, 8 per cent, and 30 per cent. Increase in HDL-c level was not statistically significant. Three patients had drug side effects.
Our analysis of current evidence suggests that intermittent statin administration is effective in lowering LDL levels in patients with dyslipidemia. All dosing regimens, including alternate days, 3 to 5 times a week, 2 to 3 times a week, and once a week, were shown to be effective.
If you're taking a statin medication to lower your cholesterol, you will need to keep taking your prescription, or your cholesterol will likely go back up. Stopping your statin can put you at risk of having heart disease and other preventable health problems like stroke and heart attack from high cholesterol.
If you miss a dose of this medicine, take it as soon as possible. However, if it is almost time for your next dose, skip the missed dose and go back to your regular dosing schedule. Do not double doses.
Another option is to stay on the twice-weekly schedule and raise the dose to 5 mg. “By introducing statins slowly, 70% of “statin intolerant” patients end up being able to take a statin: 60% of them can take it every day, and 10% can take it three times a week,” Dr. Cho says.
Adjust dosage
Studies have found that intermittent dosing can achieve LDL-C reductions of about 20% to 40%, although impacts on cardiovascular outcomes have yet to be established. A large single-center study of statin intolerant patients found a trend toward mortality benefit with intermittent dosing.
You usually have to continue taking statins for life because if you stop taking them, your cholesterol will return to a high level. If you forget to take your dose, do not take an extra one to make up for it. Just take your next dose as usual the following day.
Anyone who wants to stop taking a statin should talk to a doctor. In some cases, coming off these drugs can be dangerous. The doctor may suggest reducing the dosage, combining the statin with another cholesterol lowering drug, or switching to another drug entirely.
If you have very high cholesterol and are at high risk of heart attacks or strokes, a specialist may prescribe 40mg a day. This dose is not suitable for everyone. high cholesterol – 5mg to 10mg, taken once a day. Your doctor may increase your dose every 4 weeks up to 20mg a day.
Take atorvastatin once a day. You can choose to take it at any time, as long as you stick to the same time every day. This prevents your blood levels from becoming too high or too low. Sometimes doctors may recommend taking it in the evening.
Many cholesterol medications can also be cut in half. Some examples include: Atorvastatin (Lipitor) Gemfibrozil (Lopid)
Although atorvastatin has a half-life of 14 hours, due to its active metabolites, the half-life of its HMG-CoA reductase inhibition is as long as 20 to 30 hours (2). For that reason, this is an ideal agent for alternate-day dosing.
Ans: Atorvastatin 5 MG Tablet lowers the level of LDL cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood. It is used to avoid heart attacks and Primary Hypercholesterolemia. It is also used to treat conditions such as Mixed Dyslipidemia and Hypertriglyceridemia.
Serious side effects
you get a skin rash with pink or red blotches, especially on the palms of your hands or soles of your feet – this could be a sign of erythema multiforme. you have severe stomach pain – this can be a sign of acute pancreatitis.
It's important to know that stopping statins cold turkey, or even gradually, can cause serious health problems and you should talk to your doctor before doing so. To understand more about your heart health, take a health risk assessment at Baptist Health.
It takes about 77 hours (3 days) for atorvastatin to be out of your system. The elimination half life of atorvastatin is approximately 14 hours. This is the time it takes for your body to reduce plasma drug levels by half. It takes approximately 5.5 x elimination half lives for a medicine to be out of ones system.
Muscle pain from statins might also show up differently for different people. For example, you could feel muscle weakness, soreness, aches, stiffness, or cramps. These side effects can range from mild to severe. The older you are, the more likely you are to experience statin-induced muscle pain.
Doses of atorvastatin
The higher the dose of atorvastatin, the more your cholesterol levels go down, but it comes with a higher potential risk of side effects. A standard daily starting dose for adults is usually 10 mg to 20 mg and then progresses to higher doses like 10 mg, 20 mg, 40 mg, or 80 mg daily (FDA, 2017).
Doses of 20 mg/d lovastatin or pravastatin or 10 mg/d simvastatin generally reduce plasma LDL cholesterol levels by about 20% to 30%. Higher doses of these drugs can reduce LDL cholesterol levels by as much as 40%.
A low-dose statin like atorvastatin (Lipitor®) is safe for most patients, including those with mild liver enzyme abnormalities.
Bempedoic acid improved heart health in patients who can't tolerate statins, study finds. Bempedoic acid may be an alternative for people who need to lower their cholesterol but can't or won't take statins, according to a large study published Saturday in the New England Journal of Medicine.
A newer drug called Nexletol was approved in 2020 by the FDA to treat high cholesterol, but the new study published in NEJM shows that the drug also reduces the risk of heart disease. Researchers believe this data supports using Nexletol as a safe and effective alternative for many people who cannot take statins.