Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsWhat Are Statins?Side Effects of StatinsRisk Factors for Side EffectsManaging Side Effects
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
What Are Statins?
Side Effects of Statins
Risk Factors for Side Effects
Managing Side Effects
Statins are widely usedcholesterol-lowering drugs that can reduce the risk of major heart-related health problems.
Though statins generally have a good safety profile, they can cause side effects in some people. Still, healthcare providers believe that the benefits of statins outweigh the risks related to side effects. There are options for managing side effects if they become bothersome.
This article will review the side effects of statin drugs and how to manage them.
Getty Images /The Good Brigade
Statin medications are used with diet and exercise to treathypercholesteremia(high blood cholesterol levels).
Statins belong to the prescription drug class called hydroxymethylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG CoA) reductase enzyme inhibitors. They work to reduce the production of cholesterol in the liver.
Statins lowerlow-density lipoprotein (LDL)cholesterol, also known as bad cholesterol, and triglyceride levels in the blood. They also increase the concentration ofhigh-density lipoprotein (HDL),also known as good cholesterol.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved and marketed single-ingredient products statins include:
Other combination products include:
Statins have a good safety and efficacy profile for improving cholesterol levels. However, they can cause some side effects.
The benefits of taking statins generally outweigh the side effects, but they can still be bothersome for some people. In most cases, they are reversible but sometimes require stopping therapy for a while.
Some more common mild side effects of statins include:
Other potential reversible side effects include:
In some people, statins can cause a few severe side effects. However, these are generally uncommon. Some other rare severe side effects of statin include:
The risks of these are rare and associated with higher drug doses. Healthcare providers believe that statins' benefits outweigh the risks of these side effects.
Muscle Pain and Soreness
Some people reportmild muscle pain and soreness while taking statins. However, some studies suggest that most reports of muscle pain may not actually be due to the statin itself.
If the side effects become especially bothersome, your healthcare provider might reduce the dose.
Rarely, severe cases may involve a type of muscle disorder calledrhabdomyolysis, which can cause the following symptoms:
Statins are relatively safe for most people. However, they are not recommended in certain cases. Some people are at an increased risk of side effects. This includes if you:
Drug and Food Interaction
Statins may interact with certain drugs and cause an increased risk of muscle injury:
The FDA has updated the Lovastatin label for interactions with other drugs and their dose limitations to reduce the risk of muscle injury.
Avoid drinking large amounts of grapefruit juice while taking statins. Excessive grapefruit juice consumption can raise the amount of the drug in the blood and increase the risk of muscle disorders. However, an 8-ounce (240-milliliter) glass of juice or one grapefruit can be safely consumed.
How to Manage Side Effects
In many cases, the benefits of statin therapy outweigh the risk of adverse effects. However, in some people, the side effects may be severe enough to drive healthcare providers to permit the discontinuation of statin drugs.
Some also believe that takingcoenzyme Q10 (coQ10) supplements can help fight muscle disease.However, the data on this has been mixed, and many studies don’t indicate much benefit from taking CoQ10 supplements for this purpose.
Statins can lower the risk of a heart attack or stroke, and the risk of life-threatening side effects from statins is very low.
Summary
Statins are a widely used group of drugs that are generally well tolerated. Like any other type of drug, they may cause a few side effects in some people.
The side effects of statins, such as muscle pain, memory loss, or a slight increase in the risk of new-onset diabetes and the potentially increased risk of stroke, are negligible when compared with the benefits that the medication provides.
Tell your healthcare provider about any other drugs you take before taking statins.
14 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Hussain A, Kaler J, Ray SD.The benefits outweigh the risks of treating hypercholesterolemia: the statin dilemma.Cureus. 15(1):e33648. doi:10.7759/cureus.33648MedlinePlus.Statins.U.S. Food and Drug Administration.Statins.MedlinePlus.How to take statins.U.S. Food and Drug Administration.Cholesterol-lowering drugs gets labeling changes.Hu M, Cheung BMY, Tomlinson B.Safety of statins: an update.Ther Adv Drug Saf. 2012;3(3):133-144. doi:10.1177/2042098612439884Cholesterol Treatment Trialists' Collaboration.Effect of statin therapy on muscle symptoms: an individual participant data meta-analysis of large-scale, randomised, double-blind trials.Lancet. 2022;400(10355):832-845. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01545-8.Pergolizzi JV Jr, Coluzzi F, Colucci RD, et al.Statins and muscle pain.Expert Rev Clin Pharmacol. 2020;13(3):299-310. doi: 10.1080/17512433.2020.1734451Safitri N, Alaina MF, Pitaloka DAE, Abdulah R.A narrative review of statin-induced rhabdomyolysis: molecular mechanism, risk factors, and management.Drug Healthc Patient Saf. 2021;13:211-219. doi:10.2147/DHPS.S333738.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Signs and symptoms of rhabdomyolsis.Ramkumar S, Raghunath A, Raghunath S.Statin therapy: review of safety and potential side effects.Acta Cardiol Sin. 2016;32(6):631-639. doi:10.6515/acs20160611aCrisan E, Patil VK.Neuromuscular complications of statin therapy.Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep. 2020;20(10):47. doi:10.1007/s11910-020-01064-0U.S. Food and Drug Administration.FDA Drug Safety Communication: Important safety label changes to cholesterol-lowering statin drugs.Wei H, Xin X, Zhang J, et al.Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation on statin-induced myopathy: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Ir J Med Sci. 2022;191(2):719-725. doi:10.1007/s11845-021-02651-x
14 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Hussain A, Kaler J, Ray SD.The benefits outweigh the risks of treating hypercholesterolemia: the statin dilemma.Cureus. 15(1):e33648. doi:10.7759/cureus.33648MedlinePlus.Statins.U.S. Food and Drug Administration.Statins.MedlinePlus.How to take statins.U.S. Food and Drug Administration.Cholesterol-lowering drugs gets labeling changes.Hu M, Cheung BMY, Tomlinson B.Safety of statins: an update.Ther Adv Drug Saf. 2012;3(3):133-144. doi:10.1177/2042098612439884Cholesterol Treatment Trialists' Collaboration.Effect of statin therapy on muscle symptoms: an individual participant data meta-analysis of large-scale, randomised, double-blind trials.Lancet. 2022;400(10355):832-845. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01545-8.Pergolizzi JV Jr, Coluzzi F, Colucci RD, et al.Statins and muscle pain.Expert Rev Clin Pharmacol. 2020;13(3):299-310. doi: 10.1080/17512433.2020.1734451Safitri N, Alaina MF, Pitaloka DAE, Abdulah R.A narrative review of statin-induced rhabdomyolysis: molecular mechanism, risk factors, and management.Drug Healthc Patient Saf. 2021;13:211-219. doi:10.2147/DHPS.S333738.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Signs and symptoms of rhabdomyolsis.Ramkumar S, Raghunath A, Raghunath S.Statin therapy: review of safety and potential side effects.Acta Cardiol Sin. 2016;32(6):631-639. doi:10.6515/acs20160611aCrisan E, Patil VK.Neuromuscular complications of statin therapy.Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep. 2020;20(10):47. doi:10.1007/s11910-020-01064-0U.S. Food and Drug Administration.FDA Drug Safety Communication: Important safety label changes to cholesterol-lowering statin drugs.Wei H, Xin X, Zhang J, et al.Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation on statin-induced myopathy: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Ir J Med Sci. 2022;191(2):719-725. doi:10.1007/s11845-021-02651-x
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Hussain A, Kaler J, Ray SD.The benefits outweigh the risks of treating hypercholesterolemia: the statin dilemma.Cureus. 15(1):e33648. doi:10.7759/cureus.33648MedlinePlus.Statins.U.S. Food and Drug Administration.Statins.MedlinePlus.How to take statins.U.S. Food and Drug Administration.Cholesterol-lowering drugs gets labeling changes.Hu M, Cheung BMY, Tomlinson B.Safety of statins: an update.Ther Adv Drug Saf. 2012;3(3):133-144. doi:10.1177/2042098612439884Cholesterol Treatment Trialists' Collaboration.Effect of statin therapy on muscle symptoms: an individual participant data meta-analysis of large-scale, randomised, double-blind trials.Lancet. 2022;400(10355):832-845. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01545-8.Pergolizzi JV Jr, Coluzzi F, Colucci RD, et al.Statins and muscle pain.Expert Rev Clin Pharmacol. 2020;13(3):299-310. doi: 10.1080/17512433.2020.1734451Safitri N, Alaina MF, Pitaloka DAE, Abdulah R.A narrative review of statin-induced rhabdomyolysis: molecular mechanism, risk factors, and management.Drug Healthc Patient Saf. 2021;13:211-219. doi:10.2147/DHPS.S333738.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Signs and symptoms of rhabdomyolsis.Ramkumar S, Raghunath A, Raghunath S.Statin therapy: review of safety and potential side effects.Acta Cardiol Sin. 2016;32(6):631-639. doi:10.6515/acs20160611aCrisan E, Patil VK.Neuromuscular complications of statin therapy.Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep. 2020;20(10):47. doi:10.1007/s11910-020-01064-0U.S. Food and Drug Administration.FDA Drug Safety Communication: Important safety label changes to cholesterol-lowering statin drugs.Wei H, Xin X, Zhang J, et al.Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation on statin-induced myopathy: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Ir J Med Sci. 2022;191(2):719-725. doi:10.1007/s11845-021-02651-x
Hussain A, Kaler J, Ray SD.The benefits outweigh the risks of treating hypercholesterolemia: the statin dilemma.Cureus. 15(1):e33648. doi:10.7759/cureus.33648
MedlinePlus.Statins.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration.Statins.
MedlinePlus.How to take statins.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration.Cholesterol-lowering drugs gets labeling changes.
Hu M, Cheung BMY, Tomlinson B.Safety of statins: an update.Ther Adv Drug Saf. 2012;3(3):133-144. doi:10.1177/2042098612439884
Cholesterol Treatment Trialists' Collaboration.Effect of statin therapy on muscle symptoms: an individual participant data meta-analysis of large-scale, randomised, double-blind trials.Lancet. 2022;400(10355):832-845. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01545-8.
Pergolizzi JV Jr, Coluzzi F, Colucci RD, et al.Statins and muscle pain.Expert Rev Clin Pharmacol. 2020;13(3):299-310. doi: 10.1080/17512433.2020.1734451
Safitri N, Alaina MF, Pitaloka DAE, Abdulah R.A narrative review of statin-induced rhabdomyolysis: molecular mechanism, risk factors, and management.Drug Healthc Patient Saf. 2021;13:211-219. doi:10.2147/DHPS.S333738.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Signs and symptoms of rhabdomyolsis.
Ramkumar S, Raghunath A, Raghunath S.Statin therapy: review of safety and potential side effects.Acta Cardiol Sin. 2016;32(6):631-639. doi:10.6515/acs20160611a
Crisan E, Patil VK.Neuromuscular complications of statin therapy.Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep. 2020;20(10):47. doi:10.1007/s11910-020-01064-0
U.S. Food and Drug Administration.FDA Drug Safety Communication: Important safety label changes to cholesterol-lowering statin drugs.
Wei H, Xin X, Zhang J, et al.Effects of coenzyme Q10 supplementation on statin-induced myopathy: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Ir J Med Sci. 2022;191(2):719-725. doi:10.1007/s11845-021-02651-x
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