If you have a total cholesterol of 200 mg or higher, or an LDL (bad cholesterol) of 160 or more, your doctor may prescribe a cholesterol-lowering medication. According to the American Heart Association, more than 106 million Americans over the age of 20 suffer from high cholesterol. These are the people who may be taking Pravachol, a drug belonging to the family of statins, used to lower both total and LDL cholesterol.
Common Side Effects in Clinical Trials
According to eMedTV.com, a clinical trial of thousands of people revealed that the most common side effects are nausea and vomiting and signs of the common cold. Headaches, diarrhea, constipation, the development of an unexplained rash, fatigue, indigestion, heartburn, gas, dizziness, muscle pain and flu-like symptoms such as fever, chills and body aches were all among the most common as well.
Signs to Stop Using Pravachol
In some cases side effects can be so serious they require you to stop using Pravachol immediately and call your doctor. These side effects include chest pain, muscle pain or weakness that is accompanied by a fever or dark-colored urine, nausea, loss of appetite, stools that are the color of clay, stomach pain and a yellowing of your skin or eyes, also known as jaundice.
Memory Loss
This side effect of Pravachol is so rare, occurring in less than 1 percent of patients, that it is difficult to tell whether it is due to the medicine or an underlying medical condition. According to eMedTV.com, there has been little research done on this side effect, and the research that has been conducted is fairly inconclusive. However, there have been sporadic reports from those taking statins who state that memory loss is a problem.
Liver Problems
Just as with memory loss, there is the potential for liver problems with Pravachol. Some of the potential problems include increased liver enzymes, hepatitis, fatty liver, liver cancer (hepatoma) and jaundice.
During a clinical trial, only 1.2 percent of participants experienced increased liver enzymes. However, according to eMedTV.com, the same number of participants taking a placebo pill experienced the same significant increase in enzymes. The remaining liver problems have been reported after the release of Pravachol onto the market.
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