What are the side effects for cholesterol lowering drugs?
The likelihood of potential side effects of lipid lowering medications depends on the medication and what other medical problems you have. For example, the commonly prescribed HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors such as lovastatin, pravastatin, fluvastatin, and simvastatin all carry a small risk of hepatitis for which your doctor may be periodically ordering screening bloodtests. Other common reasons for stopping this class of cholesterol lowering medication would be for muscle weakness/pain. Other cholesterol lowering medications include high-dose niacin (flushing, abdominal cramps, and also hepatitis) and cholestyramine (bowel irregularities and fat soluble vitamin deficiencies).
