Vytorin-- knee problems -- also, shortness of breath??

[RedHouse]

I write this in case it is of help to anyone else.

I am convinced that Vytorin created problems for my knees. My doctor was very slow to accept this, but finally took me off it.

I am 58, overweight and have some mild arthritis in my knees. One of my knees is also missing some cartilage. but I usually can walk on it fine. I do have some mild stiffness in the morning.

I was on Zocor for years. Then I was on Vytorin 10/20, which was then reduced to Vytorin 10/10 because the higher dosage showed an elevation of my CK and aldolase values, which raised concerns about possible muscle deterioration, I guess.

While on Vytorin I had episodes of my knees swelling after exercise, which needed to be aspirated--quite unusual for me. Once my whole leg below the knee and foot swelled terribly--I never had that happen before! But, worse than that, I continuously had these problems: Both my knees were very stiff after sitting for any period. My knees felt “heavyâ€

[tex62]

RedHouse,

Vitorin is a combination drug containing Ezetimibe (Zetia) and Simvastatin (Zocor). Vitorin 10/10 contains Zetia 10mg and Zocor 10mg. I took Zocor 10mg for less than two years. The first night that I took the drug, I started experiencing difficulty breathing. It became very bad over a weekend when my doctor wasn’t in her office, so I went to my pharmacist. Together, we read every word in the Zocor brochure and there was no mention of respiratory problems. Later my doctor agreed that it couldn’t be the result of Zocor. The problem continued, sometimes getting better, but never okay. After about a year, I developed fluid on my lungs and was in the emergency room all day while many different tests were conducted. In the following three months, I had even more tests with each producing normal results.

My husband had started taking Zocor about the same time as I did. His doctor added Tricor in addition to the Zocor. Within days, his health started a significant downward spiral. I spent days researching the drugs we were taking. One of the things that I found was that the Zocor product sheet had been updated to include a warning about difficulty breathing. Needless to say, both my husband and I stopped taking the drugs. My breathing difficulty went away completely after stopping Zocor. Since stopping the Zocor, I find that I have similar symptoms with breathing difficulty when I take aspirin, so I don’t take it.

I am not overweight and didn’t have problems with my knees, but there were times while taking Zocor that I had horrible pain in my hips. After sitting for a period of time, I would have to stand for a few moments before I could walk. Statins seem to produce different side effects in different individuals and some people don’t seem to have side effects at all. Of 14 people that I personally know who have taken a statin, 10 have had various side effects and stopped taking the drug, 1 has side effects but is still taking the drug due to health risks, and 3 don’t seem to have any side effects after 2-3 years.

I'm glad you are better. Like you, my husband and I are fine now. We are thankful to be able to lead active, healthy lives once again.

See Dr. Graveline’s article on pulmonary hypersensitivity reaction
http://www.spacedoc.net/pulmonary_hyper ... atins.html

[cjbrooksjc]

RedHouse: I took Zocor for a few years and developed a number of dibilitating side effects; one of which was the feeling I was not oxygenating properly (which, to me, is a little different than being short of breath). A few controlled, deep breaths would usually alleviate the symptom. It happened standing, sitting, and sleeping and so could not be attributed solely to exertion. I have no explaination for this phenominum, but it went away after I stopped the statin so I do feel I have an explaination for the cause. Wish you well.

Brooks