Lipitor

The generic for Lipitor is Atorvastatin, which is primarily used to lower high cholesterol and triglycerides in patients. Lipitor is also used to increase HDL, or high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in the body. But don’t worry; HDL is good cholesterol, so this particular effect is positive.

Lipitor is also an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor. A more common term for this is statin, which aims to reduce the production of fatty substances in the patient’s system. One of the fatty substances that Lipitor aims to reduce the production of is cholesterol itself.

Aside from these purposes, Lipitor is also used in reducing risks of heart conditions, like heart attack, blood vessel blockage, chest pains, or even strokes. There are also other medical conditions that can be treated with the use of Lipitor. The aforementioned are the more common ones.

Lipitor is a drug that is taken with a diet that has been prescribed by a physician. In fact, Lipitor is rarely taken without this prescribed diet. And the prescribed diet is something one should stick to.

But not all people can take Lipitor any time. One who is allergic to any of Lipitor’s components should not take it at all. Taking Lipitor can prove to be more harmful than helpful to the person. A person who has a liver condition should not take Lipitor as well. Taking Lipitor can only worsen the liver condition. If one is taking certain drugs, such as mibefradil, itraconazole, or telithromycin, that person should not take Lipitor as well. And, as expected, pregnant and nursing mothers should not drink Lipitor. For these conditions, consult your physician for the proper drug to take instead.

So, if you are indeed fit to take Lipitor, then make sure to follow your physician’s instructions when doing so. This is so as to avoid any side effects from Lipitor. Because, just like any drug, Lipitor does have its own set of side effects.

Lipitor can cause constipation, stomach pains, and weakness or fatigue. These are actually the minor side effects of Lipitor. The more severe side effects of Lipitor include allergic reactions, such as rashes and swelling of the facial features, chest pain, discoloration of the urine, fever, flu-like signs, joint pains, and especially muscle pain. In fact, Lipitor and muscle pain actually go together. Most patients taking Lipitor do experience muscle pain at one point or another.

Also, Lipitor can very well cause dizziness and nausea. These side effects of Lipitor drugs actually worsen when you take in alcohol, or any form of medication that can cause such as well. If you do take Lipitor, be sure not to be on the road, or doing something that can prove to be unsafe.

Although Lipitor can be taken in with or without food and drink, just make sure not to take it with grapefruit or grapefruit juice. Lipitor and grapefruit don’t really mix well. This is because grapefruit has some components that would increase the possibility of Lipitor side effects happening. So, just to be on the safe side, stay away from grapefruit when you’re taking Lipitor.

Your physician might also instruct you to take Lipitor with a drug that specializes in lowering certain lipids. Samples of these drugs may be Questran or Colestid. The combination of Lipitor and the lipid-lowering drug enhances the lowering of cholesterol more. But it is important not to take both drugs at the same time. Generally, Lipitor is taken once a day. It depends on you, whether you would take it in the morning, noontime, afternoon, or lunch. Just don’t take the two drugs at the same time. If you took the lipid-lowering drug first, then you should take Lipitor four hours after that instance. But if you took Lipitor first, then you should take the lipid-lowering drug at least an hour after that instance.

If you have any questions or doubts about the drug and its side effects, contact your physician right away. As always, it is better to keep your physician informed of any kind of change. That way, everyone is more prepared for anything that might happen.