The FDA has announced that safety changes are going to be made on the labels of some of the most popular cholesterol drugs known as statins. The changes are primarily intended to warn patients of the increased risk for type 2 diabetes mellitus. Hyperglycemia, an increase in blood sugar levels, has been reported with the use of statins.
It is also necessary for this class of cholesterol lowering drugs to carry warnings concerning the possibility for short-term memory and cognitive problems. Certain brain-related problems has been linked to statin use. Therefore, statin labels will now have information about patients having episodes of confusion and memory loss.
These changes that will effect Atlanta residents include: Lipitor (atorvastatin), Lescol (fluvastatin), Mevacor (lovastatin), Altoprev (lovastatin extended-release), Livalo (pitavastatin), Pravachol (pravastatin), Crestor (rosuvastatin), and Zocor (simvastatin). And combination drugs include: Avicor (lovastatin/niacin extended release), Simcor (simvastatin/niacin extended release), and Vytorin (simvastatin/ezetimibe).