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Is Muscle Pain From Statin All in the Mind?

Muscle Pain From Statin All in the Mind

Muscle pain from statin was shown to be “all in the mind” of the patients.

The Study was carried out by researchers from Imperial College London, Royal London Hospital, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, the University of Gothenburg, and the University of Oxford.
The results from this study shows that: patients that reported excess rate of Muscle Pain (side effect) knew they were taking Statins. The study drew to the conclusion that, the public has exaggerated Statin related side effects. In other words, patients experience statin side effects because they expect it to happen.

Stains are a group of drugs use to lower the level of bad cholesterol in the body.
Muscle pain from Statin has always been traditional. Throughout my pharmacy journey, I was trained to be cautious about Muscle Toxicity in patients taking Statin. A guidelines has been produced to help healthcare professionals determine when to stop Stain treatment due to muscle toxicity.

Study Report Analysed 

1.  This study was funded by the pharmaceutical companies: Pfizer, Servier Research Group, and Leo Laboratories.
Pfizer is amongst the main players in the market for manufacturing Stains. Could this be an influencing factor?

2. The likelihood of a Statin related side effect, was previously established to be increased in higher doses. This study was conducted using a low dose of Statin (Atorvastatin 10mg).

3. The study recruited a high percentage of patients from the White European background. Could results be different among other ethnic groups.

4. It could also be argued that, because patient taking statin knew about drug association with muscle pain. Therefore they were more inclined to report muscle aches and pain. And not rule it out as a part of normal ageing process.

In Conclusion

The results from this study expresses unanswered questions. Pharmacist Diary urges patients to discuss with their doctors before stopping Statin treatment.
Bad Cholesterol is influenced by a healthy lifestyle. Patients are advised to partake in regular exercise, eat healthy diet low in saturated fat and high in fibre.

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1 Comment

  • […] 1. Lipid-lowering medicines: This class of drug lowers the level of bad lipids in the body. Lifestyle behaviours greatly impact lipid levels. If lifestyle changes such as diet and fitness does not work, the most common lipid lowering medicine is Statin. Current press release on statins HERE. […]

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