Statins

I too suffered side effects from Atorvastatin. Only after I refused to take it any more was I taken seriously at a review. My size was halved but symptoms continued so I was put on another type. (Can't remember which one but it hasn't been mentioned.) A low dose, 10mg. Symptoms returned within a week! 

To be continued .....

This is a really interesting thread.  I to am on Simvastatin and experience some unusual numbness in my feet.  I haven't spoken to anyone about it but now I think it may be time to.  I didn't think to mention it to my consultant a couple of weeks ago, but as my next hospital appointment is not until next May, I think a visit to the GP or a phoneymoon call to the hospital may be in order.

David 

With my feet David I might have thought my feet had a numbness. However when I thought about it and described it to my doctor I described as a sensation as though standing on a soft sandy beach. Not so much a numbness as being aware of my feet. Normally folk would not be aware of feet and hands - they just 'are'. I don't know how to better describe the sensation. 

The doctor tested my feet with some long narrow strands of cotton wool. I laid down with eyes closed and told him when and where he touched my feet. I had no problem detecting. 

I wore a 24 hour heart monitor earlier this month. Subsequent review with at the stroke clinic 'Monitor results fine' we will try a 7 day monitor next' 

I had a phone call from the hospital last week to go in for an ultrasound on my heart. This is in addition to a 24 hour ECG that I'm booked in for in a couple of weeks. The ECG they did on me a couple of weeks back at the stroke clinic was normal so I'm a bit puzzled by their apparent obsession with me. The nurse said my notes were the thinnest she had ever come across and I want to keep it that way. ATM they seem to be operating a bit like the Readers Digest. 

My notes need two hands to lift 

They used to reckon that the only way to escape Reader's Digest was to move home

I posted earlier that I sort of accepted about 10 years ago that Statins were a good thing, and have gone along with that thinking. I don't have anything of interest wrong with me (that I know of) and today looked at my dosage, it's 80mg and researching says it is a fairly high dose so booked online for a 10.00am appointment to discuss.

At least this thread will prompt people to question the 'usefulness' of statins and the dosage.

The user and all related content has been Deleted User

I have read all this thread with interest. Neither of us has high cholesterol or high blood pressure but it has been very interesting and enlightening to read about the issues that some of you have had using statins. 

Just an aside, my OH had problems earlier this year with  kidney stones, the anti-inflammatories they prescribed caused him to have terrible back pain behind the left kidney. The doctors wouldn't believe that it was the anti-inflammatories that did it. However the pharmacist was adamant that OH should stop taking them.  Within 24 hours the pain lessened and within a few more days had gone. This is all documented in his notes, yet the other day he was at the doctors for his shoulder problem and the doc prescribed something that should not be taken by anyone with kidney problems  needless to say OH hasn't taken them.

I posted earlier that I sort of accepted about 10 years ago that Statins were a good thing, and have gone along with that thinking. I don't have anything of interest wrong with me (that I know of) and today looked at my dosage, it's 80mg and researching says it is a fairly high dose so booked online for a 10.00am appointment to discuss.

At least this thread will prompt people to question the 'usefulness' of statins and the dosage.

In reply to my own post,

I saw the Doctor and expressed my concerns that 80mg is a high dosage continuously for 10 years, she looked at my previous blood tests and the latest cholesterol figure was 5.1 which is good, she also told me that 10 years ago my reading was 7.4 so whether it has been a change in diet/lifestyle/exercise or statins remain to be seen.

So she decided to cut my dosage by half to 40mg and to have a blood test in 8 weeks time, to see if my cholesterol levels have raised due to the reduction in dosage.

Happy with that.

The user and all related content has been Deleted User

I have read all this thread with interest. Neither of us has high cholesterol or high blood pressure but it has been very interesting and enlightening to read about the issues that some of you have had using statins. 

Just an aside, my OH had problems earlier this year with  kidney stones, the anti-inflammatories they prescribed caused him to have terrible back pain behind the left kidney. The doctors wouldn't believe that it was the anti-inflammatories that did it. However the pharmacist was adamant that OH should stop taking them.  Within 24 hours the pain lessened and within a few more days had gone. This is all documented in his notes, yet the other day he was at the doctors for his shoulder problem and the doc prescribed something that should not be taken by anyone with kidney problems  needless to say OH hasn't taken them.

TG

I think most medication is a necessary evil and few of them are neutral on the affect it has on our bodies. I was taking Naproxen for my knee which caused me to suffer Atrial fibrillation and the cardiolgist was convinced the pain killer was to blame. People who take medication for common ailments on a long term basis should always insist on annual blood test to check the performance of their major organs like kidneys and liver.

David