Started Repatha - Side Effects

Hi @rogerswm, and welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect! It sounds like you are doing all you can to keep your arteries throughout your body flexible and open for blood flow. Kudos!

Here is more information about how blood flow throughout the body gets impacted by fatty buildup and lack of nutrients if you haven’t reviewed it already.
- Mayo Clinic Arteriosclerosis / Atherosclerosis Overview
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/arteriosclerosis-atherosclerosis/symptoms-causes/syc-20350569
If you are comfortable sharing more, what is your experience with cardiovascular health? Do you take Repatha?

@llynch17056

Did you switch to something else?

@ctjoe7 No, I didn’t until recently when I tried Terzepitide. I’ve been on it over 6 months with no side effects. It DID lower my LPa, but not my cholesterol. I recently am trying Nexletrol, not a statin and I’m told it is for people that can’t take statins or Repatha. No side effects yet but only on it for less than two weeks. I will report back here if I can tolerate it. Gout is a common side effect so I will be monitoring my uric acid closely.

So your taking both Terzepitide and Nexletrol?

I just completed my 8th Repatha shot. Until Sundau night side effects were minimal, but now I have headache and muscle pain in legs, arm and back.

Frustrating.

Yes, I’m taking both. I started the Terzepitide to lose about 10 pounds but then I read that it also lowered LPa and maybe cholesterol. Since I had no side effects I kept it going and was hoping it would also lower my chlorestrol, but so far it hasn’t.

I’m doing the Nexletrol to lower the cholesterol, but the verdict is still out on whether I can take it or not. After less than 2 weeks it has been ok.

When I tried Repatha I thought I had found something I could take because the side effects were so slow coming on, but once they did, they were really bad and only got worse. I finally got off and the recovery was very slow as well. I thought my back pain would be permanent but it finally started easing after about 6 or more months off of it.

Wow. Sounds familiar. I was good until 2 days before my 8th injection (4 mths) when the headaches and muscle aches started. I am in contact with my cardiologist and hope he has a suggestion (or pain stops) before my next scheduled injection in 2 weeks.
My LDL did go from 123 to 68.

@ctjoe7 my previous cardiologist was literally giddy about how much Repatha lowered my LDL. So when I told him I couldn’t continue taking it due to how sick it was making me he said, “then I have nothing for you” and didn’t schedule any follow up appointments. In other words, he would no longer be my doctor because I couldn’t tolerate the enormous side effects of Repatha. It was like he never even looked into how bad the side effects are in some people. Many cardiologists just want to blow you off if you can’t take statins or Repatha. He treated me as though I was just being difficult and/or faking how sick it made me. I literally went into a depression because he had convinced me I had heart disease and would die if I didn’t take the drugs that I absolutely couldn’t take!! I made the decision that I would rather die doing yoga, living life, exercising, cutting my grass, etc than to live longer moaning in bed. I have a new cardiologist now. He’s much better. At 78 and considering my life style, he said that statistically I’m probably not going to drop dead soon. Anyway, I am trying Nexletrol. In my second week. I’ll be doing uric acid tests since that’s a side effect of Nexletrol.

@llynch17056

You shouldn't have to through things like that with a doctor but I know there are some like that. I just turned 70 and up until last May, I could keep up with people 20 years younger. Now that seems like a distant memory. I have read that Repatha will last a long time in your system, 2-3 months from last injection. I have read that COQ10 helps with statin side effects, but have not seen if anything helps with Repatha. Hope your new cardiologist and the Nexletrol help you.