My own stupidity ....

[Lesley]

Good Afternoon All,
New user here, so please excuse my probably stupid questions. Have only just found this forum (thank God), and have been reading as much as I can to bring me up to speed.
Have been on Pravachol for approx. 7 years, female, 54 and progressively getting sicker, weaker, lung problem that couldn't be diagnosed, lack of digestive motility and in constant pain - when complaining to (former) doctor, it was the amount of stress I was under (basically all in the mind). I have only ever taken the drug at half dose (20mg) because I thought it was causing my symptoms, but never had time to chase it up as my eldest son was left with a brain injury post neurosurgery. Found new doctor who ran blood tests for Rheumatoid Arthritis - no rheumotoid factors but he found my kidneys are compromised. He will be away for a couple of weeks, but he sounded alarmed enough on the phone to make me start thinking, and I found this forum. Needless to say, I've stopped the Pravachol, and will tell him what I'm doing when he returns. All of the information here has been wonderful, and I would like to put it into practise immediately.
My question to those of you who are far more expert than me: As my kidneys appear to have sustained some damage, is the L-carnitine safe to use, or will it cause more kidney damage?
Thank you, Lesley. Sydney.

[Darrell]

If you've just stopped the statin today, consider tapering down instead by splitting the dose for awhile instead of just going cold turkey.

I'm not sure L-Carnitine helps with anything besides skeletal and cardiac muscle problems. Are your weakness and pain in regard to leg muscles?

[Lesley]

Hello Darrell - thank you for answering. Took last dose 48 hours ago. Yes, pain and weakness in legs, arms, feet and intercostals. Lesley.

[Darrell]

I don't know anything about excretion of L-Carnitine by the kidneys. Not do I know the impact of your kidney problems. But I can tell you my L-Carnitine experience:

I had a right leg ache for 16 months after I stopped Zocor. It was my only known side effect that didn't fade away, with the possible exception of some tinnitis. I could not walk for more than about 45 minutes before the ache set in, and it would only go away with hours of rest. It could keep me awake at night. I had to plan my limited activities around it.

In April, Ray Holder (on this board) suggested that I try some L-Carnitine. I found 250 mg capsules at my supermarket and tried one right away. Forty-five minutes later I started feeling the change. It was wonderful: the ache was fading away.

Eventually I worked up to 500 mg capsules and I now take four or five of those a day (2,000 to 2,500 mg/day in divided doses of no more than 1,000 mg at a time). 500 mg will suppress the ache for three to four hours. 1,000 mg will hold me for perhaps seven hours. How long it lasts is muscle-activity dependent. I've been taking it for about six months now.

It's not a cure, but it has returned me to normal activity levels. It has worked for some on this board, but not all. I think that whether it works or not depends on the kind of damage you've suffered, and that depends on your statin, the statin dose, how long you took it, how long you continued it after the side effects started, and a whole lot of personal body chemistry factors.

I believe what I'm left with in my right leg is called "exercise intolerance" and it is due to what is known as "mitochondrial cytopathy" in the general diagnosis of skeletal muscle myopathy. Not many doctors run in to it. Q10 and L-Carnitine are the typical treatments and some doctors recommend supplemental B vitamins and vitamin C too. I added the vitamins for a couple of months and decided they weren't doing much for me, but that may be because I was getting enough of them anyway. I have always taken a multivitamin and I try to eat well as regards veggies, etc.

[Lesley]

Thank you Darrell - I am glad the results were so good for you. My thinking was that as L-carnitine is an amino acid, and if kidneys were already leaking protein, there was a possibility of increasing damage. Just a query. Lesley.