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Crestor Death

A patient taking the cholesterol medication Crestor died in December of 2004. Reports have made a connection between the fatality and the disease "rhabdomyolysis," a muscle destroying disease that has been linked with Crestor. The manufacturer of Baycol, another statin, took the drug off the market after significant side effects, including fatalities related to rhabdomyolysis, occurred.

Rhabdomyolysis causes serious muscle damage. Cells in the muscle begin to rapidly break down. Because of the muscle's breakdown the body's blood gets saturated with proteins, including substances like creatine, myoglobin, aldolase, potassium, and lactate dehydrogenase. This saturation can lead to kidney failure and death.

Rhabdomyolysis occurs due to a number of reasons including statin use. Use of the statin Crestor can increase a person's risk for getting the muscle degeneration and associated kidney failure. The concern about Crestor is that it is too powerful of a statin and may cause serious damage to the patient's body.

Signals that a patient may be coming down with rhabdomyolysis are very frequently hard to quickly diagnose. Muscle weakness is the main symptom, accompanied with pain, tender skin, stiffness, fever, confusion, and even darkened urine.

Options for treatment primarily involve cessation of the muscle cell destruction-causing agent in preventable cases, including stopping medications like Crestor. Fluids are vital in replenishing the blood and aiding in kidney recovery. Dialysis may be required if other treatments do not show signs of helping.

A recent study published in Circulation, Journal of the American Heart Association , found that Crestor was more likely to cause severe side effects like rhabdomyolysis than other drugs used to lower cholesterol such as Lipitor, Pravachol, and Zocor. The study was conducted at Tufts University using data compiled from FDA reports. The report concludes that Crestor should only be used as a last resort.

Patients who have high risk factors for rhabdomyolysis such as renal insufficiency, or who are on combination therapies including a fibrate, may be at a higher risk of developing rhabdomyolysis when taking a statin drug like Crestor as well. Untreated or misdiagnosed rhabdomyolysis will invariably lead to death. The patient's age has recently been looked at as a factor as well, and the risk of heart disease or hypercholesterolemia seems to be less than the risk of developing adverse reactions to statins after a certain age.

Crestor is the only statin to have caused rhabdomyolysis before being approved by the FDA. If you suspect Crestor related side effects, have a doctor diagnose your symptoms immediately. If the side effects are consistent with Crestor related problems, or if a loved one has died while taking Crestor, contact a lawyer through our free consultation service immediately.

More Crestor Resources

Crestor Side Effects - Information from Online Lawyer Source.com

Crestor - Official pharmaceutical website from Astra Zeneca.

Mercola.com - "Crestor and Other Statins: Are They Really Worth the Risk?"