Zetia Side Effects
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Zetia Side Effects
There have been reports of Zetia causing serious side effects, such as:
- Drug-Induced Hepatitis
- Liver Failure
- Acute Pancreatitis
- Rhabdomyolysis
- Thrombocytopenia
When the FDA signs off on a drug for marketing to the public, it always has a list of potential impacts that the drug may have, other than the intended effect. These "side effects" are listed in a document that must by law be packaged with every container used to provide the medication to the public.
In 2002 the FDA released the cholesterol drug Zetia for public consumption following a twelve week Phase III trial by drug manufacturer Merck. The tests had shown sufficient evidence of the following side effects to require that they be included with every container when the medication was sold:
- stomach pain
- tiredness
- muscle problems
Very rarely, patients have experienced severe muscle problems while taking Zetia, usually when Zetia was added to a statin drug. If you experience unexplained muscle pain, tenderness, or weakness while taking Zetia, contact your doctor immediately. You need to do this promptly, because on rare occasions, these muscle problems can be serious, with muscle breakdown resulting in kidney damage.
- allergic reactions, including swelling of the face, lips, tongue, and/or throat that may cause difficulty in breathing or swallowing, rash and hives
- joint pain
Drug manufacturers are very cautious in their listings of side effects. Often they will include every perceived consequence, however minor, for purposes of liability protection. What is interesting in the list of side effects for Zetia is the mention of negative impact that the drug may have when taken in combination with a statin drug.
Statin drugs are extremely popular and successful cholesterol drugs that have proven not only to control LDL (bad cholesterol) but to reduce heart attacks and strokes in the process. That is the goal of cholesterol management, as high levels of LDL can lead to the formation of blockages in critical arteries around the heart. Zetia is also designed to control LDL, but through a different process than the statin drugs. For that reason it seemed attractive as further treatment for high cholesterol counts – but it also proved capable of producing side effects when combined with one of the statin drugs.
Zetia has been widely prescribed in conjunction with one of the statins – the two most popular being Lipitor and Zocor. In fact, Merck has a drug on the market that combines Zetia with Zocor in a single pill. However evidence is beginning to emerge from studies that the drug companies completed and didn’t bother to publish which suggests that Zetia does not accomplish a reduction in arterial blockage or a reduction in heart related medical incidents, despite its ability to reduce LDL.
There is also some evidence that Zetia can contribute to liver problems. So despite the usual litany of side effects, this drug is also becoming known for the effects that it has failed to deliver.
