Lipitor and blood tests

I have been on LIPITOR for years 10mg. at least 8years my doctor told me as long as my blood tests were normal "I had nothing too worry about" through the years I had so many health problems,along with so many tests I thought this pain was normal.My pain was gradually getting worse I started to think this pain has to be because of my age.I'm 67yrs old. Last week I had an appointment with one of many Drs. I mentioned that I felt more pain than usual when I told him I was taking Lipitor he was concerned I was told this medication I should stop but it was up to me if I wanted too or not. I had an appointment with another doctor the same day to found out the results of all my blood tests. I was pleased that all my blood were within normal range but there was the blood test for muscle enzyme,CPK was mildly elevated. I was told that Lipitor could make that test elevated. I had another test that that day and was called and was told that that blood test was elevated a little more.I have been off Lipitor for one week now and never going back to taking Lipitor again. I'm so glad I found out about Lipitor and the damage it could do to your health. I'm also grateful for finding this sight by accident. I hope one day I will feel better also I'm not going back to the Dr. that started me on Lipitor and wanted me to stay on it!

Frantee, I was a near fatal victim of statins. A few weeks ago I met a fit 70 yr old retired builder customer, who was wreaked in pain, couldn't walk to his letterbox or stay awake or do weeze etc etc. I gave him the Medsafe (New Zealand government) print out of statin adverse effects. He and his wife then knew without doubt that it was his statins killing him. They went to their doctor who put the fear of God into them "if you stop taking this medicine (statins) you could well have a heart attack or stoke and die" this fellow's golden years are painfully and avoidably ruined, end of story. This is despite Medsafe telling all doctors in NZ "... if a patient presents unexplained muscle weakness or pain to cease the medicine immediately" Undisputably criminal negligence. Like yourself I have been blackmailed, when I've gotten a bit niggly with my GP I get very very scared that my supply of oxycontin will be cut off. If I were to loose my pain killer any time in the last 14 months I would definitely have suicide out,at the worst I could not walk 500 metres without pain killer even with the medicine I came very close to suicide a couple of times. The only solution for survival is to have your blood tests etc done with your doctor, accept the prescriptions, agree with everything he says then study or visit a qualified natural path before taking medicine. There is currently major dissention at Harvard medical school where the medical students are saying "the information we are receiving is not at "pure" as it should be in such a "protected" environment. It seems like the pharmaceutical finance structure, stocks, bonds, shares debentures etc is in the top 3 or 4 finance structures on the planet. We've seen oil cause war and the largest frauds of all times in the financial banking sector I have no doubt the largest and cruelest genocidal crime has yet to be fully exposed. help yourself and help others, best for your recovery.

I am 62 years old and I was taking Lipitor 10 mg for the last 5 years in New York. When I moved to California the new doctor switched to Lipitor 20mg and I started to have strange side effects. After a pause of two days, I restarted and the symptoms were worse: my muscle in the upper arms, and my calves were hurting and week, my back ached, my head was empty nad I felt dizzy all the time.
I stopped two days ago and today I had blood in my urine. What's happening? should I go on any medication at all to lower my cholesterol? My new test was: 179 Cholesterol
HDL 71
LDL 95
I am too scared to start any other drugs like Crstor or Niaspan as I was recommended.
Please advise,

I was a competitive runner with a number of sub 3 hour marathons under my belt before I was prescribed statins for elevated cholesterol 2 years ago. The first go round was 40mg zocor but muscle soreness and loss of strength started within 2 months. Switched to NIASPAN but couldn't tolerate it. The last 7 months have been on 10mg of Lipitor and now have intense pain in my legs, soreness in my wrist and thumb and swollen feet. I can still run but much less than before and much slower. I regularly go to the gym but have seen a steady decrease in the amount of weight I am able to lift. I have a blood test in a couple of days and will be looking for myalgia again. I have discontinued the statin and don't plan to start again. I was healthier before the DR decided to "help" me with my cholesterol problem.

I'm a 38 y/o woman. For 7 yrs I knew my cholesterol has been high. I refused to take cholesterol medication and decided to diet and exercise but that didn't work. I've had 2 children in the past 3 yrs. In May of this year I started having chest pains and palpitations. I had blood tests done. I was given Inderal and also prescribed Zocor 20mg for my cholesterol. It was 243 with and LDL of 178. I took Zocor for a week. I felt so awful. I was weak, I lost my appetite. I was constantly tired. I couldn't even carry my 10 month old son, yet alone care for him. I informed my physician and she changed it to Lipitor 20mg. I thought I was doing fine. I checked my levels again after a month. My cholesterol was 113 and LDL 58. I trusted the doctor knew what she was doing. At the same time I also was taking Omega 3's. I asked my doc to lower the dosage to 10mg. From the time I was taking Zocor and the start of Lipitor. I was feeling tingling and numbness in my arms, hands, fingers, toes, feet and legs. I also was having muscle pain. I asked my doctor about that. She mentioned because of my heart palpitations, it could be symptoms of anxiety and panic. I had feeling of pins and needles throughout my body, not knowing when it would occur. I had muscle pain in my arms and legs and neck pain. I went online to see the side effects of Lipitor and came across this website. I decided to do an experiment. I stopped taking Lipitor 9 days ago. I was on statins for almost 4 months. I don't have the feeling of tingling and numbness, but I still have pins and needles and muscle pain. I have to say, I feel so much better. I hope to get better. I 'd really like to know, how long does the medication stay in your system? What are the effects of getting off it so suddenly. I'd love to feel myself again.

I am a male of 67 years old. I took Lipitor for a year, and after a few months of taking it, I felt muscle pains in my arms and shoulders, as well as my back. I felt weak and could hardly put my socks on by myself. I told my family doctor that I thought the problem was caused by LIpitor. He said it couldn't be possible, but he couldn't figure out what was wrong, so he sent me to a rheumatologist, who gave me an initial diagnosis of polymyalgia rheumatica. I went back for a checkup, and although the sed rate was normal, the C-reactive protein was elevated. He felt his diagnosis was an accurate one. He prescribed prednisone for me. I had some doubts about it, since I am diabetic, and was concerned about the elevated blood sugar it might cause. Well, it did elevate my blood sugar, and I weaned myself off it within three months. My blood sugar went back to normal, and while the prednisone helped the symptoms of muscle pain and aches, after I stopped it, the pain returned with a vengeance.

About a year passed after discontinuing the prednisone, and I felt worse and worse. Any time I engaged in physical activity, such as yard work, I was almost incapacitated for two or three days. I felt weaker and weaker, and by now, my activity is about ten per cent of what it was three or four years ago. I am unable to do anything physical without paying a heavy price.

I would tell the doctor that I felt the problem was caused by the Lipitor. He would dismiss my comments, saying that the pain should have gone away after discontinuing Lipitor. He sent me back to the rheumatologist with results of recent blood tests. Both the sed rate and C-reactive protein were normal. The rheumatologist touched my back and other areas, which caused me to jump. He said it might be fibromyalgia. I told him again that I thought it was caused by the Lipitor. He said the same thing my GP had said: if it had been the Lipitor, the pain would have gone away when I stopped taking it. I know the Lipitor caused the pain, because I tried red yeast rice for a couple months. The pain increased to almost unbearable, so I discontinued the red yeast rice. If I were not susceptible to the pain from the Lipitor, would the red yeast rice have increased the pain?

So here I am with a fuzzy diagnosis from the rheumatologist, and no clue from my family doctor (that he will verbalize, at any rate). My life has gone steadily downhill. I used to be a strong, active person, but now I can do very little, and my strength is a shadow of what it formerly was. What can I do?

I am a 42 male, I have always been healthy and felt healthy as long I can remember, I never went to the doctor. So this year, 3 months ago to be exact, I decided to do “the right thing”, start taking a physical at least once every years, who know something might be wrong with me and I don’t know it.

Anyway, after I took the physical and some blood tests, my doctors office calls me and they told me that the sugar was a little high (124) and that I am at risk for Diabetes, so they started me on a diabetes medication. Although my Cholesterol wasn’t high, they suggested starting Lipitor (20 ML) just in case because I am at risk and I don’t want to take chances.

A month into it, I started having some back pain, but never suspected medication. I was exercising at least 4 times a week, some cardio and free weights, so I thought, I might have made the wrong move while exercising or maybe sleeping without knowing it ( although I never recall such a thing). Usually it takes a few days for the pain to go away when I did the wrong move, but this pain wouldn’t go away. A month after that (last month), a sharp pain started on my right wrist (shooting pain), that goes up my right arm until my shoulder blade and upper right back. The pain was so sharp and wouldn’t let go, all day, all night and every minute in between. Also, I experienced some numbness on some of my right fingers (especially the thumb and index). I never suspected the medication. Of course the doctors wanted me to take all sorts of tests and MRIs etc..you name it. They also wanted me to go on pain pills (strong ones), I never did, and I used Advil instead, which did not help much. This pain ruined my two week vacations to France (I didn’t not want to forgo the airplane ticket and the hotel, they were already paid for).
I started “googling” the web for “sharp back pain”, just to get some clues, which led me to side effect sites, which led me to this site. I decided to stop all medications immediately 3 days ago, the pain went away, I still have s slight numbness on my thumb, although it is much better, I will keep you posted. Thanks to all the people who shared their story with us, I know that everyone of us could be a different case, what worked for me doesn’t necessarily work for someone else, I know that many here are frustrated about these side effects and whether they are permanent or not, I wish I have the answers. One thing is sure, Lipitor could be poison for some people, I felt going down fast for the last 3 months with no way to stop it, glad I found this site.

My doctor started me on Lipitor over a year ago. I started having muscle pain in my shoulders but didn't equate it to the meds until I was watching television one day and a Lipitor commercial came on. It said that some people experience muscle pain.....I thought HALLELUEH THAT'S WHAT IT IS.....I stopped talking the meds and went to see my doctor who immediately changed my meds to Zocor.....guess what? The same thing happened. Went to see her again and she switched to Crestor.....same thing happened....so I started doing my own research and was amazed at what I learned and bewildered as to why my doctor was acting like I was some whining baby.

No problem, I say to myself and stopped the meds. That was last November, in January I had my yearly physical and blood tests were ordered for me in December......guess what.....my triglycerides were still high so my doctor orders Antara. It didn't say "cor" anything so I'm thinking it's not the same stuff. No, it wasn't the same stuff it was WORSE!! Within three weeks I was crying I was in so much pain. I called her and got her nurse practitioner who says that my doctor said to stop taking the pills and the pain will go away. I call back and say, "you don't understand, I can't sleep, I can't move, I can't function the pain is so bad." After several calls back and forth, and let me tell you I NEVER call my doctor unless something is incredibly wrong and that is less than rarely. Well, my doctors partner tells the nurse practioner that they will not prescribe narcotics for me. WHAT? Who asked for narcotics? I needed relief from this pain.....I would have gone for amputation!!!

So I change docs...more blood work.....high triglycerides, I refuse to take any statins. She says she has something for me that will not cause muscle pain and hands me samples of Welchol.....this one took less than a week for increased muscle pain...again I wanted to trust, but guess what i learned when I went to the Welchol site? The first side effect listed? Muscle pain.

Called the new doctors office to let them know that I was experiencing pain again and was told to stop the Welchol (which I had already done) and take Red Yeast Rice and have bloodwork done in 3 to 6 months and come back to see her. Oh no! Not without research and guess what? A side effect of Red Yeast Rice? Muscle pain.

It has been 4 months since I stopped taking the Antara and took Welchol for a week in that 4 months. Sometimes my shoulders/neck and arms don't hurt too much. Unfortunately most times they do. Both doctors insist that the pain cannot be from the drugs because the drugs have left my body. The new doctor said I probably have myolgia just because I'm 52 and that it's just a coincidence that it happened while taken the drugs but then goes on to agree that I must be "sensitive" to statins. Both doctors treat me like I'm stupid and nuts all balled up in one. I am frustrated and in pain most of the time. I have been trying to find out how long to expect this pain and am dismayed to learn that it can be years or never go away.

Yes I have high triglycerides (so does my mother and she experiences the same kind of pain so refused to take statins) and I've been warned that not taking statins could cause pancreatitis and/or heart problems. My question to that is - "then my choice is chance the heart stuff or live an incredibly painful life?"

I'll take my chances and pray for the best because right now my quality of life stinks!!

In Feb 2007 my primary doctor took blood tests and put me on a diet because I was 100 pounds overweight with fatigue symptoms. Blood Tests indicated I had diabetes (126 mg/dl) based on an FPG, and high cholesterol. The FGS was repeated and it dropped to 115 mg/dl. I have been on a low sugar low fat diet since Feb 2007.

In June 2007, I was put on Vytorin (Statin Drug) for Cholesterol. I also saw an Endocrinolist who determined I was a Predibetic and had also Reactive Hypoglycemia based on an OGTT, and determined my fatigue and neuropathy problem was not due to diabetes. She recommended a Rheumatoligist to me in September of 2007.

In late September of 2007. I saw a Rhematolgist for my sleep problems and fatique problems. I had severe muscle fatique (firing pains and numbness), chronic sleep disorder. breathing difficulty during day and when sleeping, difficulty swallowing, vision problems, fluctuations in FBS between hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia symptoms.

He determined after physical examination I had Fibremalagia since all test points on my body were sensitive to touch. He also had his lab do repeat and other blood tests (CPK, Aldolase, etc..), and prescribed a sleep study done by a specialist in my area. He took me off all Caffeine and Vytorin immediately (As I have been off it since that date). He prescibed Diclofenac for Inflamation, Citalopram 40mg for stress and anxiety attacks, Zolpidem 10 mg for Sleeping, and he requested I continue monitoring my blood gluecose twice a day.

After Leaving his office I made an Appointment with the Sleep Study Hospital to have the test done the following week. The study indicated I had Chronic Sleep Disorder where my breathing would stop anywhere from 30 seconds to two minutes during the night. The Sleep Order doctor also indicated that there was something else wrong with me out of his expertise.

In early October 2007, my Rheumatologist contacted me by phone and requested me to leave work and come to his office that afternoon to discuss my blood work. I was scared since they would not discuss it over the phone. The doctor dislosed my blood results and was concerned with a CPK of 2600 (should be less than 155) and my Alolase was six times higher than normal. He suspected I either had Polymyositis (not cureable, but treatable) or Inter-myositis (not cureable or treatable). He said he did not want to start treating me with a medication for it until he knew exactly which one I had. He said the only way to find out was to do a muscle biopsy (about the size of a pencil) on one of my large muscles preferribly a Thigh muscle.

In mid October 2007, I was scheduled to see a general surgeon and a week later I had a minor operation to remove a pencil size piece of my left thigh muscle. It was analyzed by the Childrens Hospital in New Orleans who were experts in the muscular diseases.

In Late October 2007, I was diagnosed with severe myopathy caused by the Statin in the drug Vytorin.

I remain on the same medications, have my blood tested every three months, and the CPK last indicated a reading of 900 (still very high, but it dropped all most 2/3 of what it was six months ago. It can usually take a year or so for most folks my age to fully recover, some do not. I still have the same symptoms, but the firing pains have subsided. My vision had also drastically changed, so I saw an Opthomoligist after providing her all my past records. She indicated I did not have any Renal disfunction which is good.

All the doctors agreed I should continue the stress, sleep, and inflamation medication and none of them have any reported inter-related problems. I am also on an AUTO CPAP machine when I sleep because I have two kinds of Atnea that affects my breathing (muscular and brain related). My breathing patterns seem to change quite a bit and my pressures vary from 7 to 20 and more so on the high side.

I do think the drug maker should put more emphasize on the side effect! I do believe maybe 98% people who take Lipitor without side effect that is why lots of doctors just ignored this fact. I was on Lipitor for two month with daily dose 10mg. Right after one month, I started neck pain with no reason and lasted a month didn't improve at all. Luckily, I thought about the possible Lipitor side effect so that I stopped to take it. Amazingly, just one day without Lipitor, my neck pain almost went away! I tried on/off Lipitor couple times again, and the results were consistent. But, when I revisited the doctor who prescribed Lipitor for me, he just don't believe this fact! He don't believe I had Lipitor side effect at all and prescribed me some pain killer, and asked to continue on Lipitor!
Thanks to the internet technology! I found this website and knowing so many people do have Lipitor side effect! Because this experience, I realized my mother complained back pain for more than a month with no reason, and she was also on Lipitor. I called her, and just two days after stop taking Lipitor, her back pain gone, she can walk again!
Initially, I angry about the doctor! Why he don't follow drug maker directions about the side effect! Then, I realized that in fact the doctor may never encountered Lipitor side effect either patients don't know it is the side effect or most of patients who don't have the side effect at all! I could argue that a doctor is a high trained professional, who should play cautions! Second thought doctors are human too, once they used to the impression Lipitor has no side effect, they may easily miss the warning sign, even ignored the clear fact like my doctor did!
In my view, both doctors and the drug maker responsible for the people suffering Lipitor side effect, but of cause, the law sue against the drug maker is more effective for lawyers!

Hi
I started taking 10 mg. daily ofLipitor 8 yrs. ago and about a year later I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. There's no test for Fibro, just blood tests to elimate everything else ex: Lupus, RA etc. I've been suffering so much from muscle pain, all the tender points as in Fibro and also diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. Three doctors diagnosed me with Fibro. and chronic fatigue. I had most of the symptoms everyone else is complaining about also. The pain in my stomach muscles are just about gone too.

It reached a point three weeks ago when I was having sharp pains all over my body and muscle cramps and charlie horses at night and I could just about walk up the stairs my hips hurt so much that decided to stop Lipitor. I was so tired all the time and in constant pain.

My doctors said it couldn't be the Lipitor. The pain in most of the tender points are just about gone but I know it will take a while to get out of my system. I lost muscle strength over the years and hope to get that back. I'm 64 years old and know it will take awhile .

I went to my doctor Tuesday and told him I took myself off the Lipitor and that I now remember being diagnosed with Fibro shortly after going on Lipitor. He got so mad at me and said that Lipitor doesn't cause a disease. As I said there's no test for Fibro and it's not a disease it's a syndrome or condition where the brain sends pain signals to the tender point muscles but there's nothing actually wrong with the muscles. I told him that 6 years ago when I tried going off Lipitor for 3 months and joined a gym, Curves, I felt fine and thought I was in remission. Then when I started taking Lipitor again I couldn't do the exercise in Curves and had to stop going. It never dawned on me it was the Lipitor.

I now have a problem with my heart, one condition I might have been born with but the Arrthymia I don't know about. My heart beats too many beats and it beats 4 beats and the 5th beat is backwards. Now I'm on 25mg of Topricin (the generic) beta blocker to slow down the heart beats. I don't know if this is caused by the Lipitor or not. My cardiologist said that Lipitor can affect every muscle in your body and she suggested that I get a RX for a blood test to tell whether I have muscle damage. I went for the test Tuesday but haven't received the results yet.

I'm going to change doctors, I don't like my doctor's attitude with me over the Lipitor. These doctors think they're God. When I told him on Tuesday about the 3 months that I felt fine 6 years ago he said that there are other drugs besides statins to lower cholesterol. I don't want to go on any drugs and the non statin drugs can cause intestinal blockage, he got upset when I told him that too. I'm going to try to lower it with flaxseed and fiber and see if that works. I go to Weight Watchers and kept 17 lbs. off for 6 years now, I do try and eat healthy.

I can't believe it cost me almost 8 years of my life in pain. It's even hard for me to get down on the floor with my granchildren, I have to crawl to the couch or chair to lift myself up and I get tired so easily. I just hope I get back to normal.

I'm so glad I found this website and figured out what was wrong with me. I hope my writing helps someone else dignosed with Fibromyalgia and taking a statin.

Thanks for listening.
Marie

I am a 52 year old male from South Florida. Two years ago my Dr prescribed Lipitor. I started to feel weakness in my legs after mowing the lawn but I dismissed it as just being worn out from the summer heat and humidity. About six months ago the little toe on my left foot became numb and it spread to my other toes. I get continuous spasms in my left big toe and now the toes on my right foot are becoming numb. When I sleep at night I am continuously being woken with leg cramps in my feet, calfs and thighs. My feet feel heavy, my legs feel weak. There are times that I just lose my balance. I have a physical job and when I get home I don't want to do anything. I am going to see a neurologist on 3/31 to see what he thinks. My biggest fear is that I now have permanent damage. I have not read any articles about individuals having a full recovery after stopping the medication.

Have been taking Lipitor for about 11 years. Fairly recently increased dosage from 10mg to 20mg. For about the past week have begun to experience tingling, numbness and general ache in legs, arms, sometimes cheeks and fingers. Spoke to doctor who seems stumped by these symptoms. Will be doing blood tests to test thyroid, anemia, B-12 levels etc.etc.etc. Given what I have read here I can't help but think I know what the problem is. I should mention I had quadruple bypass 12 years ago so the doctor doesn't want any spike in cholesterol levels.

I initially took Lipitor and stopped because of the side effects (muscle pain). My cholesterol went higher and my doctor. put me on Lipitor again and added Zetia. I took both of them since 9/06. Slowly, I started getting muscle pains in my left elbow,arm, shoulder, neck, hands, face, etc. My doctor told me it was arthritis and I tried several natural products to no avail. In the mean time, I continued to research for something natural to lower my cholesterol. I decided to try Pantethine while I was using the Lipitor/Zetia. I was surprised my blood tests showed that my cholesterol was lower due to Pantethine. Last week, I decided to stop the Zetia and when I saw this website and so many people and their side effects, I stopped Lipitor a few days ago and increased the Pantethine I am taking. Hopefully, in time, the pain will ease or stop.

I hope this information will be some help for other people.

In general, most doctors,nurses, health care people, etc need courses for natural/alternative products . . . . . . instead of surgery and dangerous drugs.

I too am taking Lipitor and have been for a couple of years now.
On Nov.19th I was given the diagnosis of Fibromyalgia.
Now I read the side effects and they are they same!

Within 2 weeks of my father taking Lipitor, he started suffering joint pains and achiness. It started in his pelvic area then would move to his knee, foot, wrist, elbow, shoulder. Sometimes his feet and hand swell up. It got so bad, that I had to take him to emergency to make sure that nothing was wrong. They ran blood tests on him, couldn't find anything, and told him to rest. My father used to be very active, even for his age of 74.

I couldn't believe that the doctor prescribed Lipitor even though my father's cholesterol was normal. My father had to prove to the doctor by taking another blood test which came back normal like before. He stopped taking Lipitor two weeks after he started, yet he still has these pains and has a difficult time being mobile. Usually after he does a little light exercise, he starts to feel better, but sometimes its so bad that he can't even think about moving around. Everyday there is a pain in different areas of his body. I hope that this will eventually go away.

I originally went on 10mg of lipitor a day in January,2007, experienced leg pain,muscle ache and weakness,so after 3 weeks went off the drug on my own.In June 2007 after talking to different Dr's I went back on Lipitor,10mg, figuring that I had not really given the drug a chance as sometimes side effects do subside after a while.I saw my Dr on July 3rd & my cholesterol had gone down to 170 in about 3 weeks.I told him about my symptoms, which were the same as before & he told me to let him know if they got worse.By August 30th 2007 I just could not tolerate the pain and achiness all over my body,I was not sleeping well as every time I turned in my bed I woke up from the pain ( We even got a new mattress fguring maybe that was contributing to the joint pain) My joints became swollen & red,I could not lift up my arms,they were so sore and weak,my neck was so stiff that it was hard to drive and have to turn my head,I had a constant headache and what seemed to me like a"fuzzy brain"I am 63 years old and have never experienced anything like this,I am an active woman with a great deal of energy and people who know me could not believe what was happening, instead of scooting ahead of everyone I was barely keeping up.I found myself not wanting to eat as my stomach was constantly bloated & in pain & I was gaining weight too.
I went off Lipitor on September 1st and the withdrawal sypmtoms have been horrendous, I went to see my Dr yesterday & he put me on an anti inflamatory drug ,I have taken 2 dosages & am already feeling an improvement.This web site really helped as I felt I was not alone suffering from the side effects of Lipitor.Many people I have talked to have experienced the same symptoms but were attributing them to aging.

I have been on lipitor for a little over two years now. I experience extreme joint and muscle discomfort. I am also picking up weight at an alarming rate. No matter what I do to lose the weight, it's not working. I've had several blood tests, but all come back fine..but I know I don't feel well and I'm having trouble remembering things....

I have fibromyalgia so when I complained to my doctor about the increased and almost unbearable pain after being on Lipitor it was not taken seriously, also blood tests showed up negative for any problems. Finally after being sent to a arthritis specialist he took me off the drug. He also told me that half of the patients that he see that are on Lipitor have serious side effects even though blood works shows nothing. More than a year off the drug I still have chronic and debilitating tendonitis in both arms and bursitis in both hips- which doctors tell me is highly unusual.

HI I AM A 56 YEAR OLD WOMAN AND HAVE BEEN ON LIPITOR FOR 4 YEARS NOW,AT FIRST ALL SEEMED WELL THEN 2 YEARS AGO I WAS SENT TO HOSPITAL WITH BURNING PAIN IN MY GROIN AND STOMACH AREA,I WAS DIAGNOSED WITH DIVERTICOLITAS,THEN IN JANUARY THIS YEAR I HAD TROUBLE BREATHING OUT AND AGAIN WAS SENT TO HOSPITAL, NOTHING WAS FOUND OTHER THAN AN ANGRY RED LUMP UNDER MY ARM WHICH TOOK MONTHS TO GO I SUFFER FROM SEVERE LEG CRAMPS AND PAINS IN THE LEFT SIDE OF MY RIBS,,MAKING SLEEPING DIFFICULTI WENT TO SEE MY DOCTOR ON FRIDAY AND TOLD HIM I SUSPECTED LIPITOR WAS TO BLAME AND HE DID SOME BLOOD TESTS, WELL YESTERDAY I WAS BACK WITH A SUSPECTED TRAPPED NERVE AND HIS FIRST WORDS TO ME WERE! HAVE YOU STOPPEDTHE LIPITOR THEN ,WHEN I SAID YES HE SAID !YOUR LEVELS ARE OK ANYWAY SO PLEASE THINK TWICE ABOUT STATINS I CLASS MYSELF AS GENERALLY HEALTHY DONT SMOKE HARDLY EVER DRINK ALCOHOL BUT LIPITOR HAS GIVE ME SOME BAD TIMES , BRENDA

I have taken statins for over 10 years. I suffered muscle aches and cramps but put it down to my age (56) However recently I noticed weakness in my chest when weight training.
It was then I realised that my left Pectoral Muscle had all but disappeared, leaving just flabby skin. The right side is still firm.
A visit to the doctor and subsequent blood tests showed abnormal levels of harmful Enzymes. I was taken off statins immediately but would like to know if the muscle damage is permanent or will it recover over time.

I am shocked. For months I have been suffering from sev ere muscle cramps in my legs and back that have meant I've been on increased painkillers. I have been blaming lack of exercise, but now that I've been going to a gym for weeks I've been blaming the new exercise. Now I'm questioning Lipitor - and reading so many of the side effects about muscle problems makes me think it's the drug. I also have had increasing urinary incontinence - more blaming of me. A new doctor said I need blood tests to see if I need a change of blood pressure medication - by chance I note that he has written on that request that I am on Lipitor. I didn't mention my aches and pains because not one doctor has told me there could be any side effects with Lipitor. Hence, I am shocked that there is so much documentation about the serious side effects of it.

Female 67. I have been taking Lipitor for about two years. I began to notice that I was getting out of breath and fatigued after short walks and usual chores. I began to have muscle pain and joint aches. All along I thought this was just part of the aging process. As the weeks progressed, the pain became severe and the fatigue and weakness was unbarrable. I was in bed much of the time. I told the Doc my symptoms, at which time he did the blood tests, which were normal. He said he thought it was depression. I happened to see a clip on the side effects of Statins, and the light went on! I stopped taking Lipitor, and in a week I felt remarkably better. I am hoping as the weeks go by, I continue to improve. I thought I was headed for a Nursing Home. I feel like I have my life back again.

I want people to know my story. I am an RN of 23 years currently 44 years old. I was on Lipitor for 5 years started at 39. It did it job with lowering the blood levels etc.

Ten months ago I developed numbness, tingling and burning pain in my entire lower legs. I could not stand in one place it made the pain worse. I work ten hour shifts and I am on my feet the whole shift. I remember coming home and I could not stand the pain in both legs. Feet both would go numb. No back or disc problems. They ruled out diabetes. I had developed a perpheral neuropathy. Neuroton does help take the pain away folks. I would take 300mg at night at needed. I had the restless leg at night. My MD did not think much of all this ran the blood tests and that was about it. I kept mentioning it. Mind you my 47 year old MD also takes Lipitor.

Next fatigue exhausting I can't get out of bed fatigue. I have missed more days at my job in the 20 years I have been employed there. I knew something was wrong as I was so exahusted. I could hardly finish me shift. I got short of breath at the end of me shift.

I took MYSELF off the lipitor. Things got better a little. Four weeks later I still have the severe calf pain, fatigue still missing work, . Now more lab tests are orderd.

Ask your MD to do CPK levels on you this tells you if you have muscle injury or damage.Ok I have been off Lipitor for 4 weeks and my CPK level that I asked to be drawn is 1,225 normal high is 190. I have muscle injury and damage. I hope it is reversible. No wonder why I could not get out of bed.

Ask for those CPK levels. I think any prudent MD should check CPK levels along with the liver enzymes periodically.

I still have more lab test pending. I am on steroids prednisone for 10 days. I hope I can make it to work soon -they are shooting up all my vacation time with this.

This drug caused me a lot of pain , emotional distress, time lost from work.......... stress period. With my RN knowledge I have thought of possibly looking more legally into a Pfizer lawsuit. However; I live in Kalamazoo a lawyer my take my case but I would bet not many MD's in this town who their drug reps bankroll in free lunches and lavish gifts may not back me.

Educate yourself from my story and don't have to suffer atleast 10 months maybe 12 by now. I missed social and family events........... I was always in bed and could not get up just to shower and get ready for work.

Any questions email me. Vicky RN

leg and hip pain and calcium levels in blood tests showing high readings.

I have been using Lipitor (only 10mg) since Jan 06 and have started to feel pins and needles all over my body. My face, hands, legs and feet. My right legs goes weak and both my feet are numb. As I type right now my hands are numb. I asume it's the lipitor but worry it's something more serious. My GP said it's possibly side effects from Lipitor but suggested the benefits out weigh the side effects. However he suggested an alternative prescription to be taken immediately. He also stated that if I came off the Liptor now and waited awhile before taking the new drug it would be three months before it kicked in so he wants me to start the new drug immediately. I have stopped taking Lipitor since Thurs last 18th May and will not take the alternative until I get the results of blood tests. I'm worried that because I'm on a small dose and it's only 4 1/2 months since I started taking the Lipitor that it may not be side effects at all. Any positive comments would be appreciated.

Started taking Lipitor in Sept. 05, six months later I am dizzy &/or disoriented, severe thigh & leg pain, numbness in my hands & legs, shoulder pain... nausea at times... drinking alcohol makes it much worse... thought I was having a heart attack one day... was taken to the emergency room... blood tests all night... then a stress test the next day... on my release papers the cardiologist who was assigned to me wrote on them in big capital letters "DO NOT TAKE ANY MORE LIPITOR"! I am off it two weeks now & am only slightly improved.... I still get all the symptoms... the doc said it could take months to clear up! & my regular doc tried to defend herself on prescribing it to me until she saw the hospital lab reports... I told her I will never take a statin again... I am pursuing natural healthy things now... we'll see how the labs are in two months.... it's been a very scary experience & still is... BTW... I am a 49 year old male.

Persistant muscle tremors, muscle weakness, extreme fatigue, dizziness, loss of balance, neuropathy in both legs and hands, tinnitus, memory loss, inability to concentrate and make decisions, pain in back of neck and legs.

The symptoms started six months ago--two years after first starting to take Lipitor. I did report muscle pains to my doctor early on, but he just tested my liver and said I was fine. I went through two MRIs and extensive blood tests by a neurologist. Every week my symptoms continued to worsen. Finally, a friend mentioned another friend with similar symptoms who had linked it to Lipitor. I stopped use of Lipitor and within four days, all symptoms but the tremor and nerve damage was gone. I have no idea if the damage is permanent.

I consider Lipitor to be the worse health issue I have ever faced.

Been going to doctors for extreme muscle weakness and pain, but no diagnosis was made. Some days I can barely function. Two weeks ago I was so weak I could not get out of bed (very abnormal for me) and when I tried to call the doctor, I began to vomit violently and they called an ambulance to rush me to the hospital. Tests there did not show anything significant, so I was sent home with antibiotics for a "slight bladder infection". I hurt worse than with the worst kind of flu, but no sign of fever. Off and on during the past weeks the pain gets so bad I can barely function. I decided to investigate side affects to various meds I am taking and have now found all these warnings for Lipitor, which I have been taking for about a year. The blood tests were all fine, but I suppose those are to determine kidney damage. Can I stop taking this immediately?!?? I cannot bear these symptoms another day......

My husband has been on Crestor since early 2004 then switched to Lipitor this year. He started having low back ache about three days ago and continual tremors (painless muscle spasms) in his neck, face, shoulders, arms, and hands that have increased in intensity. He was told to go the Emergency Room today. They ran a full spectrum of blood tests including CPK, which all returned normal results and sent him home. After clearing it with the Dr. he decided to stop taking Lipitor and see if that makes a difference.

Has anyone else had tremors, muscle twitching, or small muscle spasms with statin drugs?

My mother, in her late 70s, was on Lipitor for some years. She has been taken off the Lipitor when blood tests showed gross abnormalities. She is on a Vitamin B12 therapy for severe anemia and other medications for the complications that has caused. One of the most obvious signs that things were NOT right with her was her rapidly degenerating MEMORY. It was scary. I told her she HAD to address this to her doctor. It was part and parcel of the effects of Lipitor.
Now, I was on Lipitor for 2/3 months...I immediately got what my doctor NOW has called Restless Leg Syndrome. It never went away after stopping the drug (6 mos ago). I am BACK on Lipitor and immediately upon taking it again, I started getting a worsening of Restless Leg, which inclucded severe and many nocturnal charlie horses which would awaken me throughout the night. I have only been on Lipitor for 2 months now and I am noticing muscle "tightening" in my arms (from the elbow down), too. I was given Quinine Sulfate for the Restless Legs...which I don't believe is in itself a separate disease, but a side effect of the Lipitor. I also have hand tremors. (Nerves or Lipitor?) Now, I became a vegetarian, who eats NO red meat (ok, a bite of a burger a few times a year...lol), uses soy products, veggies and beans as the mainstay of my diet. I have excluded, over the past 10 months, all saturated/trans fats and cholesterol from my diet. My cholesterol readings are like a ping-pong ball. Good, too high, too low, good, too high. I'm between a rock and a hard place re taking the Lipitor. My family is genetically predispositioned to higher than normal cholesterol levels. Yet, the doctor feels the enormous stress in my life during these past 10 months (which hopefully will start to disipate within the next month) has caused the cholesterol to be high....the higher readings began with the increase of stress.
What does one do? Is the muscle cramping and the inability to sit down for more than 15 mins a serious issue? Does it get worse? I assume it's time for a second opinion. It's a Catch 22: each side-effect can be attributed to yet another "disease" in itself. I, like most of the people on this site, have attributed most of my symptoms to "getting old".

Within 10 days of taking Lipitor I developed an unusual nodule on the knuckle of a finger on my left hand.

Within 14 days, I began awakening at night with INTENSE, BURNING PAIN in my right arm and hand. Also carpal-tunnel-like symptoms of hand and arm tingling in right arm and hand.

Within 21 days my left wrist developed a type of arthritic joint problem, which left me wearing arm splints on both arms.
Stopped the Lipitor, under Dr.'s advice, blood tests showed no muscle damage, but all problems listed above are now improving. SLOWLY IMPROVING. Left wrist may never be the same.

I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE SIDE-EFFECTS FROM THIS DRUG!!!! And they say it's safe? This is our pharmaceutical companies talking here, this DRUG IS NOT SAFE... IT IS MAIMING PEOPLE.....
Donna

I have been on Lipitor for 4 months now. I am 43 years old. The last 2 weeks , my legs feel like they have weights on them. My knees ache and it's hard to walk and not feel my knees creek. I went to my doctor and took some blood tests. The doctor is 99% sure the Lipitor is giving me these side affects. Sometimes it could give you side affects right away and sometimes it takes some time to develpe them. I am off it now for 3 days and we will see how that works........

My brother was on Lipitor for a few years. He ended up wearing a brace in each leg and using a walker.
He could not lift the left leg.
He has been off Lipitor now for 2 months.
He no longer wear the braces and he is now able to lift the left leg a little.
He has changed his diet to include
Walnuts, almonds, tea, spinach, chick peas, olive oil, lentils soup etc.
He just had blood tests done and his cholesterol is now NORMAL.
No one needs this statin drugs. This is a KILLER drug ! !!

have been on lipitor and coversyl plus for 7 months - just recently have had tingling in finger tips ,tongue swelling (it feels swollen) and tingling in tongue, head feels kind of foggy some muscle cramping and kind of a numbness on left side of arm and leg - I had a mild stroke 7 months ago at that time my cholestrol and blood pressure were on the high end of normal not out of control. I have gone for blood tests just waiting for results. I am getting a little stressed over these side effects which do not help the whole situation. Can side effects take this long to manefest themselves.
Thanx - Sharon

I have been put on five different drugs for my cholesterol. I react within a week of taking these....... I wake at night with my hand cramped and loose the power of my hand temporiarily .. then my feet go ice cold .. then get great sharp pains in feet....... aches in neck and back.....I stop the statins right away and the Dr insist we try another. Now I have said NO MORE........... this has beenover a period of three years. I am shocked at the sudden and quick problems of the drugs. I have stiff joints and swollen fingers sice the last trial of two one week......... any cholesterol lowering drug affects me....I keep telling them I can not use statins and they say this is a new drug it will be different. Nothering is different.
I have not brought my cholesterol down to normal with diet and non flush niacin...... plush omega -3 oils.
I asked the Dr why they do not try the natural route first?? He said " patients do not like the side effects!!!!" I said have you not heard of NON FLUSH NIACIN. Have just had blood tests done for rhemoid factor......... all because of my swollen joints and aches .. as a result of statins.
DO NOT TAKE THESE DRUGS...... TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR HEALTH... DIET EXERCISE AND TAKE NATURAL PRODUCTS

WE ARE NOT EXPERIMENTIAL OBJECTS FOR THE PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANIES......

THEY DO NOT HAVE OUR HEALTH AT HEART .. IT IS ALL ABOUT PROFITS AND MORE AND MORE MONEY

I have been on Lipitor for some time, but only recently realized that it might be causing my severe calf-muscle cramp.

A few weeks ago I went to hospital, as I had continuous high-level pain in my left calf and couldn't walk. They thought it might be DVT after flying.

Although one of the two blood tests came back positive for DVT, the ultrascan revealed nothing.

Since then I have experienced moderate pain (especially when first getting out of bed in the morning) in BOTH calves and the right one has had a large area of bruising.

It doesn't seem to be getting any better and I am going to STOP Lipitor and see my doctor.

I am rather worried, reading the experiences of others, that Lipitor may have caused permanent damage, from which I will never recover.

Colin *** (70)
United Kingdom

I am(was) a healthy,very active 53 year old female who began taking lipitor on November 24th. After a week, I began to experience muscle spasms in my legs and contacted my doctor. She attributed it to panic. I had my husband take me to the emergency room because I was frightened that I had ms als or some other"s" All tests cane back negative. I started experiencing pain in my bicep calves and eye. I was constantly fatigued. My husband was talking with a friend who was having similar side effects who eventually stopped taking lipitor. I happened to speak with a well respected orthopedic surgeon who suggested that i go off lipitor. I went to a neuro who said spasms were benign. I have all sorts of tests(mri, mra,cat scan,cardio tests and numerous blood tests (all negative (cpk slightly high soon after i stopped meds.) I am off lipitor for over a month and began taking coq 10(by the way Canadians patients are told to take this with lipitor.I am still having spasms in my calves but energy seems to be back. I am documenting everything i have been through in case of a class action suit and i suggest you all do the same. if my symptoms are permanent my life is greatly impacted. I am so angry at my doctors for not knowing all the side effects of this drug.