Crestor 5mg question

5mg is the lowest dose. I don't see why they are insisting on Crestor. All that matters is to keep your LDL low enough, regardless of which statin you're using.

@rowan47, I can understand why you’re trying to balance reducing your cardiovascular risk with maintaining your quality of life, particularly since you already have hip and thigh pain before starting Crestor.

You mentioned that both cardiologists are recommending Crestor 5 mg with Zetia 10 mg because of your CAC score of 1282, but that you would prefer to try pitavastatin and go more slowly. Have they explained what LDL level they are trying to reach and why they prefer Crestor for you over pitavastatin?

Since you already have muscle pain and are also being evaluated and treated for your thyroid, have your endocrinologist and cardiologists discussed whether the thyroid could be contributing to any of the symptoms you are experiencing now? It seems like knowing what is present before starting Crestor could also be helpful if you later need to determine whether anything has changed.

I’ve had to work with my doctors to find a cholesterol-lowering regimen I could tolerate, too. At one point, I started rosuvastatin (Crestor) at 5 mg only twice a week, and with my doctor I have also used a lower dose of ezetimibe. That experience taught me that there can sometimes be more than one way to work toward an LDL goal. According to one PubMed study I found, intermittent rosuvastatin has also been studied in people who have had difficulty tolerating other statins, although how well it works and is tolerated varies from person to person.

Since you’re being asked to start Crestor and Zetia together, another question you might ask your cardiologists is whether there is a reason they want you to begin both at the same time, or whether introducing them separately would make sense in your situation so you could better understand how you respond to each.

You also asked specifically about muscle symptoms with Crestor 5 mg. Members who have taken that dose, how did you tolerate it? If you developed muscle symptoms, what did you and your doctor do next?

i've done well with 5mgCrestor.

@jlharsh
They want at least 50 on ldl and just want to move quickly because of Cac..
1sr cardio accepted my pushback to Pitavastatin and follow-up in 2 months, I’m leaning to that.
Second wanted Crestor and followup 4 months.
Thyroid they both aren’t too interested in discussing. Sigh
I do tons of reading scientific studies but frustrated their ignoring my side concerns other than low dosages.

@rowan47 I'm on 5 mg rosuvastatin (Crestor) and I have no leg problems. At first, I had to be careful because if I were to lay in bed before getting up, I'd stretch in place laying flat and sometimes get a brief charley-horse. Now I do controlled stretches, so I reduce the risk of a charley horse. normally I do not think about the cramping issue. I do the stretch each AM before getting out of bed.

@rowan47, that helps to understand why they want to lower your LDL quickly. Did either cardiologist explain why they specifically prefer Crestor over pitavastatin for you? Is it because of the LDL goal they’re trying to reach, or is there another reason?

And have you taken Crestor or another statin before and had difficulty with it, or is your hesitation mainly because of the potential muscle and glucose effects you’ve been reading about?

I take 5 mg of Crestor daily and have for several years. Before that Zetia. Good results with both. I may return to Zetia but don’t seem to need it, ALL my doctors, including endocrinologist STRONGLY encouraged me to be on a statin since I have long term Type 1 diabetes. Well managed, but still….with Type 1, we conduct our health as if we have cardiovascular disease, even if we don’t. And, we need to be on a statin as it really does provide major benefits. Not sure if it matters which one.

It hasn’t caused me muscular or joint pain but I had those before Crestor. Those pains resolved almost entirely when I was prescribed Hydroxychloroquine. I have no explanation becomes it was prescribed for autoimmune…..I don’t have lupus. If you have unexplained muscular pain, you might explore that med as option, if they don’t know the cause.

I take insulin and haven’t noticed any increase in blood sugar with Crestor.

My LDL is 52 and total cholesterol 103. I also eat right and exercise daily. Don’t have CAC score yet.

I was on Crestor and had the most awful leg cramps imaginable. I finally asked the cardio to take me off or change it because of the leg pains. He has change a couple of my meds - no longer on Crestor - leg cramps have gone. I do take a lot of drugs (sometimes I feel like my own drugstore!) but I am 96 years old so that's not surprising. A day at a time.

@jlharsh yes my hesitation is the potential effect and seeing my glucose high and having muscle issues both of those conditions not being I believe considered.
I think Crestor is the go to to drop quickly, the other options aren’t even talked about which I feel is not considering what’s best for each person. Even when I told cardio #2 that I’m covered with a PCSK9 which has easier side effects, she said that would be option after statin attempt.

I had a Calcium Scoring test of 1350 before my triple by-pass.