Statin drugs & muscle damage

[9911cycling]

Does anyone here take a statin? Please be very aware of any changes/pains/aches you may experience while on these drugs. As a cyclist (or any athlete), these side effects can be more pronounced. I believe that the statin I was taking (Zocor) has damaged my larger muscles. I can't seem to develop my quads & hamstrings to the point I did last year. Warm ups take 15-20 miles instead of 15-20 minutes. Has anyone else had such an experience?

 

[vfrpilot1]

Does anyone here take a statin? Please be very aware of any changes/pains/aches you may experience while on these drugs. As a cyclist (or any athlete), these side effects can be more pronounced. I believe that the statin I was taking (Zocor) has damaged my larger muscles. I can't seem to develop my quads & hamstrings to the point I did last year. Warm ups take 15-20 miles instead of 15-20 minutes. Has anyone else had such an experience?

You need to go and see your MD TODAY !!! The symptoms you suggest may spread to other more vital muscles....Statins can cause pains up to and including muscle wasting in a small % of the population. They should disappear if you stop the drug but any damage up to this point may not reverse. Also have him take blood to check for Liver Function. I take Lipitor with no side effects. I have noticed that muscles and joints are more painful and take longer to warm up. That's just a symptom of getting older. Good luck !!

 

[9911cycling]

You need to go and see your MD TODAY !!! The symptoms you suggest may spread to other more vital muscles....Statins can cause pains up to and including muscle wasting in a small % of the population. They should disappear if you stop the drug but any damage up to this point may not reverse. Also have him take blood to check for Liver Function. I take Lipitor with no side effects. I have noticed that muscles and joints are more painful and take longer to warm up. That's just a symptom of getting older. Good luck !!

Thanks for the reply. I forgot to say I quit taking the statin. I watch my diet (always have), take fish oil, low dose aspirin & CoQ10 (doctor suggested). I feel great now except for the fact that I can tell my muscles aren't what they used to be. I believe that the statin drug has damaged my muscles and I hope it's not permanent. I am still cycling - my muscles feel better the longer I ride. And mountain biking is easier and more enjoyable. I don't really feel like I have the same issues when I mtb. Wierd. I'll be seeing my MD again soon.
I just want others to be aware since many either don't seem to notice the side effects or just pass it off as age or something else.

 

[Felt_Rider]

We are starting to see a common attorney advertisement based around your question. A Google search pulls up a lot of information like this one.

Doesn't hurt to get the word out like you are doing and I am glad I rejected the prescription that my family doctor tried to get me on before I started cycling back in 2004. I had other check ups immediately following that particular doctor and was told that I did not need the statin drugs.

 

[longfemur]

I've been on a statin since 2002, and I don't think I've had any muscle damage, at least not that I can tell. Rather than post things that might convince someone to stop taking a needed drug, it would be better to talk to your doctor about it. You can take fish oil until you grow gills, but if your bad cholesterol is really high (rather than just borderline), it's not really going to help you. In fact, it may even harm your riding, because too much of it can start affecting your hemoglobin level.

 

[alienator]

I've been on a statin since 2002, and I don't think I've had any muscle damage, at least not that I can tell. Rather than post things that might convince someone to stop taking a needed drug, it would be better to talk to your doctor about it. You can take fish oil until you grow gills, but if your bad cholesterol is really high (rather than just borderline), it's not really going to help you. In fact, it may even harm your riding, because too much of it can start affecting your hemoglobin level.

The last place I look for medical advice is an internet forum.

 

[dkrenik]

The last place I look for medical advice is an internet forum.

+1

Also, the OP doesn't state their age. I've been on statins (Lipitor) since 2003 and I've gained muscle mass (I'm now 48). I also take shorter warm-ups than when I was in my 30's (I don't understand how/why some folks take more than 10 min's before training or 20 min's before a race to warm up anymore...).

That's just me in my n=1 world, YMMV, yadda, yadda, yadda...

Dave

 

[lillywilliam]

Parents desire is to gather most of the information about the type of drugs, and their symptoms, effects in detailed to make them aware of various addictions. As today most of the teenagers are affected to drugs, each and every parent is looking for a support which makes them under more about the addictions.

Generally addiction is based on a difficult blend of natural, communal, and mental factors, and different people are haggard to dissimilar drugs for a whole host of reasons. One person may get enthusiastic on the first few times he uses it, because it helps him calm down and relax, while another person may have no interest in the high Marijuana produces, choosing to turn instead to methamphetamine or speed.

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Reliance - The difficulty in quit, or staying off the drug, more often than not measured by the number of users who finally become dependent.

Intoxication - The degree of intoxication produced by the drug in typical use.

 

[matagi]

Does anyone here take a statin? Please be very aware of any changes/pains/aches you may experience while on these drugs. As a cyclist (or any athlete), these side effects can be more pronounced. I believe that the statin I was taking (Zocor) has damaged my larger muscles. I can't seem to develop my quads & hamstrings to the point I did last year. Warm ups take 15-20 miles instead of 15-20 minutes. Has anyone else had such an experience?

Muscle related side effects are well known with all the statins. It occurs in about 1% of people taking the drug, so is relatively rare. It doesn't necessarily manifest itself within a short time of starting the statin. Sometimes a person will have been taking the drug for a year or two before they develop muscle problems. However, if you are one of the unlucky ones then you do need to stop taking the statin.

I hope you have consulted with your doctor and he/she is aware of this side effect and is working with you on other ways to modify your blood lipids.

 

[kerri38846]

Muscle effects related to statins are estimated at 1% only in industry funded studies where there are few high risk patients and when they are not taking other drugs. Muscle related effects are seen in up to 20% of people in real life, and are often simply dismissed as normal aging by doctors who don't take these problems seriously and who aren't aware of the extent of problems these drugs can cause. There was a study done that showed that the MAJORITY of statin muscle problems were disregarded and even ridiculed by doctors.

Get a vitamin d level done- even if you already take vitamin d or you think that you already get 'plenty' of sun because you are a cyclist. Chances are your levels are low (a study done on young people living in Hawaii with 20 hours per week of sun exposure were still mildly deficient!) and a study that took people with statin muscle pain tested vitamin d levels and gave vitamin d until levels were normal. Once levels were normal, they were able to take statins with no further muscle problems. Muscle problems with statins could actually be an early symptom of vitamin d deficiency.

 

[EncinitasChaco]

I just commented on this in another thread. I suffered from truly massive cramping, especially after I upped my mileage. My wife even got scared I was going to pass out from the pain.

I quit the statins all together a couple of months ago, and the cramping is all but gone. A doctor might call that coincidence, but the results have made a big difference in my life. What good is it lowering your cholesterol when you can't even sleep through the night because you're waking up every 2 hours from foot cramps?

I thought cramping from statins was just an oddity, or didn't apply to me, until I found that it appears to be a far more common problem than the industry admits. Somewhere between 20 and 30 million people in America take statins. If just 1% of them experience severe cramping and/or muscle damage, that's 200,000 to 300,000 people with problems!

Statins were a $34 billion market in the U.S. last year alone, so it's no wonder that they don't want to talk about these issues, or dismiss them as a "rarity."

At 63, I can ill afford any more muscle deterioration than that resulting from normal ageing. Quitting statins is a decision I don't regret.