Drying, crepe-like condition of the skin

[cjbrooksjc]

Has anyone experienced a drying out of the skin surface with Statins? I developed a thirst problem while on statins which perseveres to this day. I even keep water at my bedside for night thirsts (I am not diabetic). Also, I noticed among my other symptoms that my skin has changed and become dry. I've grown skin tags and developed small scaly patches. I never used lotions before Statins but use them daily now. True, when rated against my other symptoms, the skin stuff seems minor, but I am as vain as anyone and have developed a peculiar interest in my changing body due to the statin phenomenon. Truth is, I can't tell the symptom from the cause: is the change in my skin attributable to cellular changes at the mitochrondrial level, or has some other level of my body chemistry been altered to cause my cells not to retain water? Each physical and emotional event seems attributable to Statins. Each discovery is like a fly in the room: I just want to kill it because I can't ignore it. Any emapthic skin sufferers out there?

Regards,

Brooks

[Dee]

I developed dyshidrotic eczema on my feet while on Pravachol. I had NEVER had it before.

It was so bad that slabs of skin were peeling off, they were totally dried up and it was like walking on broken glass. I was on the statin for about 2 1/2 years when this developed. I got prescription stuff for it, and also went off the statin at the same time. It improved but has never gone away and I have now been OFF the statin for almost 3 years.

[bucho]

I developed scaly, flaking skin on the bottoms of my feet while on Zocor. It started as just very itchy and dry skin after about 6 months on the statin. The itching would wake me up at night. A year later the bottoms of my feet felt like they were made of "baklava"! They were peeling and itchy, and I could peel off layer after layer in rather large sections, until the tender red tissue was exposed and hurting (but still itching). By the second year I would have to rub moisturizer into the bottoms of my feet every night in order to calm the itching and irritation enough to sleep. I did this for 2 years.

I've now been off statins for 10 months and my feet are nearly back to normal skin. Still itchy at times. Less and less flaking (almost none now) but still some itching (but much less). The skin is now much more "moist," with natural oils restored, like before the statin.

I never bothered to report this problem in the forum because it was so minor compared to the other horrific things that were happening to me. But it is yet another indicator of body chemistry being knocked out-of-whack by statins.

[Ray Holder]

This is probably another of the "ageing" result of lowered Q10, the skin being deprived of the energy it needs to keep its cells working at full capacity.

I notice that some cosmetics now are said to contain Q10, so their makers must believe that Q10 will hold off skin ageing.

There is almost no bodily function that Q10 deficiency is not capable of damaging.

Ray

[cjbrooksjc]

Dee, Bucho, and Ray: Just another straw, but good to know I am not an isolated case. Today is not a good day, and the bad ones really irratate me and urge me to puzzle out what is gone wrong. Often the side effects seem as an extreme allergy attack (I have a boatload of sensitivities anyway; primarily to chemicals) Now I'm popping antihistamines on top of everything else. So many possible avenues of discovery to take to find a reasonable, all-inclusive program for resolution. This terrible development really requires employment of the scientific method. I certainly wish one of the currently on-going studies would publish. It's really maddening: try this; try that; with no more idea of what I'm doing than a five year old. Ah well, preaching to the choir.

Thanks again.

Brooks

[cjbrooksjc]

Dee, Bucho, and Ray: Just another straw, but good to know I am not an isolated case. Today is not a good day, and the bad ones really irratate me and urge me to puzzle out what is gone wrong. Often the side effects seem as an extreme allergy attack (I have a boatload of sensitivities anyway; primarily to chemicals) Now I'm popping antihistamines on top of everything else. So many possible avenues of discovery to take to find a reasonable, all-inclusive program for resolution. This terrible development really requires employment of the scientific method. I certainly wish one of the currently on-going studies would publish. It's really maddening: try this; try that; with no more idea of what I'm doing than a five year old. Ah well, preaching to the choir.

Thanks again.

Brooks

[cjbrooksjc]

Dee, Bucho, and Ray: Just another straw, but good to know I am not an isolated case. Today is not a good day, and the bad ones really irratate me and urge me to puzzle out what is gone wrong. Often the side effects seem as an extreme allergy attack (I have a boatload of sensitivities anyway; primarily to chemicals) Now I'm popping antihistamines on top of everything else. So many possible avenues of discovery to take to find a reasonable, all-inclusive program for resolution. This terrible development really requires employment of the scientific method. I certainly wish one of the currently on-going studies would publish. It's really maddening: try this; try that; with no more idea of what I'm doing than a five year old. Ah well, preaching to the choir.

Thanks again.

Brooks

[cjbrooksjc]

Sorry! I've absolutely no idea what happened to my post. I just got a new, wireless mouse and it seems to have taken over. Here goes...

[xrn]

cjbrooksjc:
"I've grown skin tags"
"Each physical and emotional event seems attributable to Statins.

xrn:
Skin tags afflict about 25% of the population... more frequent in females than males and they often begin to occur in middle age. They can usually be found on the eyelids, the neck, under the arms, on the upper chest and the groin areas.

They may be referred to (medically) as a fibro-epithelial papilloma, fibro-epithelial polyp or as an achrochordon but 'skin tag' is also widely used. They are benign tumours that comprise an overgrowth (tissue hyperplasia) of flattened skin cells (squamous epithelial cells) with a core that is often described as fibro-vascular and they are frequently pedunculated (have a stalk).

Skin tags are regarded as not usually requiring treatment but some are removed for cosmetic reasons, bleeding, irritation or general discomfort. One can treat them by excision (cutting out), cryo-ablation (freezing), electro cautery (removal with heat) and suture (tying off with thread to cut off the blood supply).

It has been suggested that obesity is a factor for the predisposition towards getting skin tags. They often return after removal and they may (rarely) presage a basal cell carcinoma. Human Papilloma Virus DNA (HPV) has been detected (in one study) in 88% of skin tags.

HPV is thought to play a part in the progression of cutaneous fibroma to carcinoma such as the basal cell carcinoma (sometimes called a rodent ulcer) which has low infiltration and spreading capability and removal is a complete cure because it is not a carcinoma that produces metastatic deposits that permit the rapid spread of the carinoma.

The above is to illustrate that the aetiology (how the condition arises) of skin tags is well known and not attributable to Statin treatment. Whether the depletion of CoQ10 in a human body that is prescribed statins, is a causal factor in any subsequent disease processes that may arise within skin tags... remains an open question.

Kind regards,
xrn

[cjbrooksjc]

xrn: Thank you for your post. My tags are around the neck and seem to have been encouraged by a small gold chain I wore continuously for about 10 yrs ( I no longer wear it), but they grew rapidly with the intro of Statins. They have shrunken since I stopped the drug; so, I am naturally suspicious. I appreciated you acute, informative, professional response.

Regards,

Brooks

[Biologist]

Brooks, et al.

I got a lot of small bumps on my upper forehead and scalp that I am sure were statin related. (They occurred -- or were the most noticeable -- just the last few weeks of my Zocor use where I believe my CoQ10 was shot and my statin levels the highest.) Right after quitting they started remitting steadily, and just now, after 3.5 months, they seem to be completely gone. Never itched. They were different from anything I had ever experienced as the smaller ones could be scratched off easily and the skin would then be smooth almost like a scab that was ready to come off on its own (and they would be back a couple of days later ready to be scratched off again). The larger ones (with only the mass of a grain of sand or two) would fairly painlessly scratch off too, but the next day there would be a tiny scab formed there. It looked a little like acne, but different characteristics.

Testimonial #10 below sounds a little like the skin issue described in this thread. Mine is probably more like Dr. Graveline's opening comments for this section (except I DID have the moring nausea thing):

http://www.spacedoc.net/skin_rashes_statins.htm


"10) I get disturbed when I read of statin drugs, as
in today’s paper when I read the article about you
and your book. I have indeed had a bad result from
statin drugs, and would like to warn others to watch
out for side affects. I took Lipitor a few years back
and after about a year and a half was having nausea
and could not eat. I had all the tests: upper G.I.,
lower, etc. with no findings. I decided on my own to
stop Lipitor and see what happened. In a week I felt
better and started to lose that awful nausea. Also, I
found that a skin condition on my feet cleared up. I
had been to two dermatologists and several other
doctors and none knew what it was. I would get a
sore especially where my shoe rubbed that became
red. Then the skin would slip off. Though the skin
grew back, it wouldn't attach to the foot; it would
just grow and come off. Now I am better."

As an update, I am the same as you in noticing good days vs. bad ones, but on whole I am seeing major progress -- probably at the 70% level on the best days. I have started running again half speed on an elliptical machine. Stamina is down from "my prime" before my "statin crisis" but I am fairly sure I am not hurting myself -- my initial concern was possible heart damage at first, but not so much any more. During the first few weeks I was real conscious of my heart beat. It was odd. Pronounced sometimes for no reason. I would not sleep on my stomach because it just weirded me out to feel it beat. No palpitations, just oddly noticeable. I suspect it was part neurological; there's an intricate neuron systems at the heart for timing, and I definitely had neuropathy issues all over. The exercise is good for my mood too. There was one day recently that I ran fairly hard and was not fatigued much for the rest of the day. That was a real good sign.

I am suspicious that I have lost some muscle mass on my upper arms, but cannot prove it. I doubt I will try any lifting for a few more months -- the lifting I did the few months before quiting was probably counterproductive. I probably was loosing muscle. Cardiac muscle is a bit different though and probably was not effected long range (hopefully).

I bought this thing a couple of years ago and check my levels before and after running and things appeared to be OK:

[http://www.martinrothonline.com/personalhealthmonitor/images/Omron%20blood%20pressure.jpg]

Hope everyone continues to improve, even if it's too slow...

Biologist

[cjbrooksjc]

biologist: I STILL have not gone back to the gym. Today was the burning, pain and stiffness routine (the day after the company picnic syndrome). All I did yesterday was stand around at an auction and load a few things in my truck - nothing major. I've got to get out and walk, at least, to see if I can recover more quickly now from exertion; actually, I'm a bit afraid to find out. There are little things I notice getting better though, and I keep hoping for an escalation. I never had the sloughing foot skin thing as some have described, but I did get the odd forehead/hairline bumps. Thanks for responding. It's good to comiserate now and then.

Regards,

Brooks

[xrn]

cjbrooksjc:
"xrn: Thank you for your post. I appreciated you acute, informative, professional response".

You are welcome, cjbrooksjc. :) I hope to try and demystify much of the mythology that is pepetrated by the medical profession.

Kind regards,
xrn

[adec]

Statins can deplete anything that followins the same pathway. Not only does that include CoQ10 to a great degree, but to a lesser degree also fat soluable vitamins: A, D, E, Lycopene, essential fatty acids, amino acids, etc.. Vitamins A & E are used by the skin to encourage healing, and maintain its moisture content. I believe there's an even greater relationship than we realize here. This is what's being neglected and in DESPERATE need of study.

[bucho]

Another warning sign of statin damage that I failed to appreciate at the time, was a sudden inability to run. About 2 years into a Zocor regime, I needed to run to my car for some reason I no longer recall, but was surprised and quite dismayed to discover that my body lacked the rigidity to run. It felt like I was made of loose, soggy "sacks" and organs that were bouncing every which way, lacking the strength to work in concert and propel me forward.

This was a shock because I wasn't overweight at the time and have always been fit. I had stopped running due to foot problems but never lost the ability to summon a run when needed, until that moment.

The good news: Now 10 months off the statin, I can run again if I need to, and it feels right again when I do. Still have bouts of exertional intolerance (exertion-induced fatigue the next day) but it continues to diminish with each passing month.

[cjbrooksjc]

bucho: It's good to know someone is recovering. Yes, the running thing, it's wierd and difficult to describe to others... like you're made of loosely joined segments of rubber. To think, five years ago I was playing volleyball, kayaking, cycling... maybe someday, right? Still, it's somehow encouraging to hear that others have the same exact reactions... odd as that may sound. I was going to try walking/running today but didn't get around to it. Thought about it a lot though; maybe my mind will be foggy tomorrow.

adec: I agree there is a great deal going on we don't know about. Hopefully it hasn't been covered up - just not uncovered YET. I can't wait for this to hit the fan. I think it's only a matter of time.

Regards,

Brooks

[Biologist]

Brooks, you might want to start with walking about a mile at a time. I did that for a couple of weeks before trying anything else. I was doing two miles the last few days before going to the gym.

Good to see you posting, bucho. Early on, your posts were helpful to me for assessing my likely prognosis. I can picture the phenomenon you spoke of in trying to run. I wonder if I had tried how I might have fared -- I never did. The elliptical machine would not have been a good test since you are stationary and have hand rails. BTW, in my post it may not have been clear that my concern about the condition of my heart was in the first few weeks after quitting Zocor, not recently when I have started on the machine again.

xrn, here is a website I go to often to figure out what a medical term is (this is the "M" page, but putting in any word will change it to the right letter):

[http://cancerweb.ncl.ac.uk/omd/contents/M.html]

In fact, I checked earlier and found that I miswrote in my previous post regarding the word "palpitations." By one definition, that is what I was experiencing: "Forceful beating of the heart."

Here's the full definition from that site:

"Palpitations: Unpleasant sensations of irregular and/or forceful beating of the heart. In some patients with palpitations, no heart disease or abnormal heart rhythms can be found. In others, palpitations result from abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias). Arrhythmias refer to heartbeats that are too slow, too rapid, irregular, or too early."

Here may be some interesting reading for some. I am going to start taking it. Probably 50 mg. for a month and then stay on 25 mg. for a long time -- maybe permanently with some breaks along the way of a week every so often. Read the first four pages when you get a chance, the fifth is just the references:

[http://www.lef.org/magazine/mag2004/mar2004_cover_dhea_01.htm]

Has the font changed on the website, or is it just my computer today?

Biologist

[Dee]

Glad to see you mention the font...yes I think it has been changed.

[Ray Holder]

And so has the page width, as far as this computeer sees it. I have to move the horizontal scroll bar to read the full line each time.

Ray

[Biologist]

Mine's back better than before now.

Three cheers for Mission Control:

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duane_Graveline]

Biologist