Statin pills safer than you think and most side-effects not caused by the drugs, doctors say, backed by new findings published in Lancet

If you know someone with high cholesterol, heart disease, or a history of heart attack, chances are they are on a statin. Drugs like atorvastatin or rosuvastatin have quietly become part of daily life for millions, often taken at night along with brushing teeth or setting the alarm for the next day.The reason they are so common is simple. Statins lower “bad” LDL cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. For people at high risk, they can be life-saving. Doctors don’t prescribe them casually, but once started, many patients stay on them long term.

Side effects are what most people worry about. Muscle aches, fatigue, or fear of liver damage come up a lot in conversations. The truth is, most people tolerate statins well, and serious problems are uncommon and a new study, published in Lancet has shed more light on this.

Researchers reviewed official drug labels (called SmPCs) for five common statins, atorvastatin, fluvastatin, pravastatin, rosuvastatin, and simvastatin, to compile a full list of every possible unwanted side effect mentioned, like muscle pain or liver issues.

They then analyzed data from large, high-quality double-blind randomized controlled trials (RCTs)."Statin therapy has been used by hundreds of millions of people worldwide over the past 30 years, and the data show that statin use has contributed substantively to age-specific reductions in global cardiovascular disease mortality and morbidity.

However, concerns about the safety of statins have been raised, with claims of excesses in a wide range of conditions in multiple organ systems," the researchers have said.

The results come from trials of above 120,000 people comparing statins with a placebo.What the researchers found is reassuring: aside from muscle symptoms and a small increase in diabetes risk, most of the so-called side effects just aren’t caused by the drugs.

Sleep problems, memory loss, depression, sexual issues, these didn’t appear more often in people taking statins. Even liver issues, while slightly higher at very high doses, were generally mild and not dangerous. A few minor things like changes in urinary protein and mild swelling (edema) showed up, but their real impact is uncertain.Why does this matter? A lot of people stop taking statins because of fear about side effects.

In the UK alone, misleading news stories caused over 200,000 patients to quit their statins in just six months, potentially leading to thousands of avoidable heart attacks and strokes.

Statins have excellent safety record

"Statins have an excellent safety record for the vast majority of people, and they have decades of solid clinical data demonstrating that the cardiovascular benefits of statins far exceed their risks. Larger clinical studies have established that for every small number of serious adverse events, statins will prevent hundreds of heart attacks and strokes.

Consequently, statins are one of the most effective prevention medications available today,” says Dr.

Binay Kumar Pandey, Director & HOD- Interventional Cardiology, Electrophysiology, Yatharth Super Speciality Hospital, Faridabad, Sector 20.“There are many reasons why people who use statins often feel concerned about side effects. However, the research has consistently shown that most individuals taking statins will experience relatively few true side effects with the drug.

In fact, many side effects such as muscle pains and fatigue would likely occur at similar rates among those taking placebo (sugar pill), and in a small number of instances, the actual drug (statin) would be the actual cause of the symptoms they experience.

In general, serious side effects resulting from statin therapy are not frequently seen (uncommon), and most side effects that occur are mild, manageable, and reversible in nature," Dr.

Binay Kumar Pandey adds.

Statin side effects are rare

Echoing the same sentiment, Dr. Vivek Kumar, Director - Interventional Cardiology & Head of Structural Heart Program,Max Super Speciality Hospital, Vaishali told TOI Health, "in most people, statins are generally regarded as safe and have been prescribed for many years around the globe to substantially reduce their chances of having a heart attack or being diagnosed with a stroke. The majority of the available evidence is based on several large clinical trials, which demonstrated that serious side effects from taking statins are rare and that the majority of individuals taking statins appear to tolerate them well.

”Talking about side effects, Dr. Vivek Kumar said, “although muscle pain has been a popular concern regarding statins, the probability of an individual developing actual muscle related side effects resulting from taking a statin is less than 5% of those taking statins. In the majority of cases, side effects such as mild diarrhea, headache or mild elevation of liver enzymes are transient. For most patients, the heart protective effects of statins far exceed their potential risks.

”Medical experts consulted This article includes expert inputs shared with TOI Health by: Dr. Binay Kumar Pandey, Director & HOD- Interventional Cardiology, Electrophysiology, Yatharth Super Speciality Hospital, Faridabad, Sector 20Dr. Vivek Kumar, Director - Interventional Cardiology & Head of Structural Heart Program,Max Super Speciality Hospital, VaishaliInputs were used to explain the findings of a new study published in Lancet about statins.