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Subscribe To Our Syndicated NewsDespite New Info, Crestor Still Dangerous
Despite New Info, Crestor Still Dangerous
March 15, 2006
The consumer advocacy group Public Citizen announced this week that despite new reports about the heart benefits of cholesterol drug Crestor, this drug is still dangerous and should not be prescribed to patients.
On March 13, 2006, professionals at the American College of Cardiology meeting presented findings indicating that the blockbuster statin Crestor may reverse the development of plaque build-up in the artery walls, which puts patients at high risk of a heart attack.
The study looked at 349 patients, a relatively small patient sample, and was conducted for a relatively short duration. Public Citizen has added criticism about the study, stating that the research was not randomized and did not refute any past evidence of the serious and unique risks associated with Crestor.
Despite new findings, there is still NO evidence that Crestor poses a unique benefit for heart patients. Rather, findings have only shown, thus far, that Crestor poses the unique risks of serious and possibly fatal muscle and kidney damage.
The authors of the recent study admit that the plaque-reducing benefit of Crestor is probably the same for other statin drugs, HOWEVER, those drugs have NOT been linked to serious life threatening side effects.
Public Citizen also points out that the dose used in the study-40 milligrams-is a dose the FDA recommends ONLY be prescribed after lower doses have failed to adequately reduce LDL cholesterol. Therefore, the group points out, it is unlikely that many of the lower risk patients in the study would have been a good candidate for this high, and more dangerous, dose.
The researchers, whose findings will appear in the April 5 th issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, have also failed to assert that doctors should switch patients to Crestor in light of this new information.
Crestor, made by AstraZeneca, is a top selling cholesterol medication, which has been linked to a fatal muscle condition called rhabdomyolysis and severe kidney damage. Despite these serious risks, and pleading from groups like Public Citizen, the FDA and AstraZeneca have failed to protect patients by taking this dangerous drug off the market.
This drug should not be prescribed and should never have been approved by the FDA in the first place, according to Public Citizen. If you would like to learn more about the serious risks associated with Crestor or you have been injured by this drug, you may wish to contact a qualified attorney.
For more information on Crestor danger, please contact us .
