zetia and kidney damage

[butterscotch]

hi.... recently my grandfather was prescribed zetia by his doctor... after only 4 days my grandfather experienced intense muscle pain and weakness... after 7 days on zetia he stopped taking the drug... however, during this time, he experienced several falls because of muscle weakness... after he stopped taking zetia, he felt better for about a week.. but then he collapsed on the floor of his home and was unable to pick himself back up... he was taken to the hospital where doctors completed an MRI, CAT scan, and numerous blood tests... supposedly they did not know the cause of his syptoms... the doctor denies that zetia is at fault...the doctor said his electrolytes were not balanced because a certain hormone was informing his kidneys to not filter water.... so my grandfather was retaining water in his body and had low sodium levels... now they are restricting his fluids... however, they are not telling us if he has kidney damage or why his kidneys are malfunctioning... what we want to know is whether or not zetia could have caused this... i am still trying to find out if he was prescribed another statin drug while he was taking zetia.. from research that i did... i saw that in "rare cases" muscle pain and weakness was associated with kidney damage caused by zetia... should zetia not be prescribed with any other statin drugs? i also noticed that zetia is expelled in the kidneys and was wondering if this is more common than just a "rare case"... my grandfather is now extremely weak and we are trying to request that we meet with his nephrologist... my family and i would appreciate any input.... we are seeking answers but not getting any feed back.... thank u so much
tara

[sos_group_owner]

Hi Tara,

Zetia can be combined with a statin drug. Vytorin is a combination drug; Zetia (ezetimibe) and Zocor (simvastatin).
I copied some info below re: Zetia adverse effects and interactions... I hope this info is useful.

Fran

What other drugs will affect Zetia (ezetimibe)?
• Before taking Zetia (ezetimibe), tell your doctor if you are taking:
· another medicine to lower cholesterol such as gemfibrozil (Lopid), fenofibrate (Tricor), clofibrate (Atromid-S), atorvastatin (Lipitor), fluvastatin (Lescol), lovastatin (Altocor, Mevacor), pravastatin (Pravachol), or simvastatin (Zocor).
· cyclosporine (Sandimmune, Neoral, Gengraf).
• You may not be able to take Zetia (ezetimibe), or you may require a dosage adjustment or special monitoring during treatment if you are taking any of the medications listed above.
• Zetia (ezetimibe) should be taken 2 hours before or 4 hours after a bile acid sequestrant such as cholestyramine (Locholest, Prevalite, Questran), colestipol (Colestid), or colesevelam (Welchol).
• Drugs other than those listed here may also interact with cholestyramine. Talk to your doctor and pharmacist before taking any prescription or over-the-counter medicines, including herbal products.
[url]http://www.drugs.com/zetia.html[/url]

Post-marketing Experience

The following adverse reactions have been reported in post-marketing experience, regardless of causality assessment:

Hypersensitivity reactions, including angioedema, rash, and urticaria; arthralgia; myalgia; elevated creatine phosphokinase; myopathy/rhabdomyolysis (very rarely; see PRECAUTIONS, Skeletal Muscle); elevations in liver transaminases; hepatitis; thrombocytopenia; pancreatitis; nausea; cholelithiasis; cholecystitis.
[url]http://www.rxlist.com/cgi/generic/ezetimibe_ad.htm[/url]

AND this is right in the DPI - Drug Package Insert...
What are the possible side effects of ZETIA?
In clinical studies patients reported few side effects while taking ZETIA. These included stomach pain and feeling tired.
Very rarely, patients have experienced severe muscle problems while taking ZETIA, usually when ZETIA was added to a statin drug. If you experience unexplained muscle pain, tenderness, or weakness while taking ZETIA, contact your doctor immediately. You need to do this promptly, because on rare occasions, these muscle problems can be serious, with muscle breakdown resulting in kidney damage.
[url]http://www.zetia.com/zetia/shared/documents/zetia_ppi.pdf[/url]