Crestor: Cresting the Void Between Help and Harm

Washington, DCThere is little doubt that statins are rising in both prevalence and popularity amidst a generally aging population, despite Crestor side effects. The Activist Post (9/1/12) notes comparative data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta that found one in four people above the age of 45 are prescribed a statin such as Crestor today. Compare that to one in 50 persons just 15 years ago.

That's because statins have been found to be relatively safe, and have a risk / benefit profile useful to those Americans with some degree, or risk of heart disease together with elevated levels of cholesterol that could hasten, or worsen heart disease if left unchecked.

Statins such as Crestor (rosuvastatin) help lower the so-called 'bad' cholesterol, thereby minimizing risk for heart attack and stroke.

Nonetheless there are Crestor side effects—not unlike adverse reactions associated with other statins on the market—that can't be ignored.

Those side effects include Crestor diabetes, with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advocating this past February an addition o the safety information for statins—including Crestor—that reflects a caution for slight elevations in blood sugar. As summarized in Men's Health Advisor (9/1/12), such a minute elevation could push some patients already teetering on the brink of diabetes, over to the diabetic side of the fence.

To that end, according to Men's Health Advisor, two large studies based on a meta-analysis of existing data found an increased risk of diabetes associated with the use of statins. One study pegged that increased risk at 9 to 13 percent.

But another, the JUPITER trial, isolated Crestor and appeared to put the popular statin in a less-than-favorable light. Crestor was associated through the JUPITER trial with a 27 percent increased risk of diabetes. This same finding holds true for generic rosuvastatin, which is available in generic form now that exclusivity for Crestor on the market has expired, leaving cost-conscious drug plans and organizations such as Medicare and Medicaid a less-expensive alternative than the Crestor tablets that arrive in a pretty box and silver blister packs.

And then there is Crestor rhabdomylosis, or the breakdown of muscle tissue. Although rare, rhabdomylosis can prove serious for the affected patient, who could die from it. Consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, in lobbying against FDA approval of Crestor, noted that a 39-year-old rosuvastatin patient died of rhabdomylosis and renal failure (kidney) after taking 20 mg of Crestor daily—a relatively small dose.

However, the FDA always comes back to its stance that the benefits of Crestor outweigh the risks, pointing to a rate of heart attack, stroke and cardiovascular complications that has been shown to be 44 percent lower in patients using Crestor, as compared with those who do not.

For anyone felled or afflicted by Crestor side effects, such an argument rings hollow. A Crestor lawsuit usually follows.