I had two stents inserted and had a separate angioplasty in the states last spring before coming here last August. The meds I have been taking are Plavix 75mg (just switched to Apolets), simvastatin (20mg), lisinipril (10mg), carvidilol 3.125mg and aspirin 81mg. Those, along with losing 10 kgs and walking 30 minutes daily for months seems to be working because my LDL is only 56. The problem is the damned muscle aches and pains in my shoulders, especially in the morning. Supposedly this is a common side effect for simvastatin and other statin. A friend said switching to provastatin helped reduce his pain. Is it available here? Has anybody had similar problems with simvastatin and found a good alternative? Thanks.

i suffered badly with sore joints for years was takin 80mgs.a day,but after i surgery,double by pass,and a new heart valve it was cut to 40mgs.every 4months i have my colestral checked and is almost perfect,so i cut down to 20mg[bestatin].do you have yours checked,mine has been steady 4.5 to 4.7 for the last 3years,before my op 8.have your checked if ok.try cutting it down,10mg.i wasnt given any alternative when i was suffering,maybe its old age creeping up on you.there is different ways of scoring,uk.4-5 was good,thailand 150-200 i was told is the same.so check with a doc.

i suffered badly with sore joints for years was takin 80mgs.a day,but after i surgery,double by pass,and a new heart valve it was cut to 40mgs.every 4months i have my colestral checked and is almost perfect,so i cut down to 20mg[bestatin].do you have yours checked,mine has been steady 4.5 to 4.7 for the last 3years,before my op 8.have your checked if ok.try cutting it down,10mg.i wasnt given any alternative when i was suffering,maybe its old age creeping up on you.there is different ways of scoring,uk.4-5 was good,thailand 150-200 i was told is the same.so check with a doc.

Good idea for me to try going down to 10mg from 20mg simvastin first and see how my LDL looks then. Since that med is working in terms of limiting my LDL to 56 makes sense to try staying with it before switching to something else. BTW, in the U.S, the scale is 100-130 LDL "desirable" per Mayo Clinic, but for those at high risk or already having heart disease to stay below 70. That is why I am happy about my 56 reading.

First I have heard about provastatin being less apt to cause muscle aches than simvastatin, but if you want to try and see, it is available here. Brand name Mevalotin and expensive import.

Side effects are often dosage related and if your lipid profile allows, a reduction in dosage may help.

you could also discuss with your doctor the possibility of going on Niaspan (niacin sustained release)