Simvastatin and muscle pain

recently was prescribed simvastatin. Pharmacist advised that 50% of people will experience severe muscle & joint pain and burning in the muscles. I can see by reading the site that this is true. Must try since cholesteral and bp are high and dr thinks at 51 I had two mini strokes (tia's). If I experience the severe pain that is discussed i will stop taking. Thank you for all the info! This site is awesome.

I am a 52Yr old male and was diagnosed with T2 Diabetes 2 1/2 yrs ago ....The doctor prescribed me simvastin a few month later 20mg once a day all had been fine till about 6 months ago when I developed tinnitus and started feeling very tired...My concentration started to lapse especially when driving as i found i couldn't remember driving down a stretches of the road etc ie passing speed cameras etc ...my memory also seems to have slowed down and i have problems recalling recent conversations or things i have done etc...just recently i have been getting severe itching on the soles of my feet almost becoming painful i have pains /aches all over and now especially have pain in my left arm right knee and fingers...when i get up in the mornings i feel like i have run a marathon the day before as i ache especially my neck and shoulders...needless to say i have now stopped taking the tablets after reading this forum and i am seeing my doctor next week initially i put all this down to getting older ...
Steve

I am 45 and have been taking statins for 5 years since having 3 heart attacks in a 4 day period.At first I was on Atorvastatin 10mg and didn't suffer any side affects,I was put on Simvastatin 40mg 2 years ago due to cost.Since then I suffer with very sore muscle pain down the length of my right arm.My GP keeps on prescribing painkillers and doesn't mention the fact it may be side affects of the Simvastatin.I find it sad that costs of drugs are the reason I am in pain.

Iv been on 40mg for a year now i could be feeling perfectly fine then suddenly an intense tiredness comes over me and i feel very sick and start heaving quite violently and desperately need to lie down until it passes, sometimes i fall asleep and sometimes not. This is a day occurrence, sometimes even 2 to 3 times a day. This only started when i started taking these tablets. The doctor says is not anything to do with the medication but im convinced it is. Has anyone else got these side effects?

I've been on simvastatins for about 2 years after TIAs. I'm 56. I had two small Strokes about year ago despite being on simvastatins. Had brain scan which showed two small areas of scarring and carotid artery scan- arteries fine. Started experiencing dizziness last year and GP diagnosed vertigo and gave me seasickness pills which didn't do much good. Since then I've experienced headaches which last for weeks, increasing fatigue (now struggle to get out of bed in morning) muscle pain which is getting really bad and sore feet (?). Increasing memory loss, confusion, lack of concentration, eye problems (when I first wake in morning my vision is blurred for ab out 30 minutes or so. I've been worried i mmay be developing Alzheimers. I've also piled on weight and the texture of my hair has changed - it has become very soft and silky and become thinner - normally my hair is very thick. Also I've had two perms in last 6 months which won't hold curl - been having perms for years and never had this problem. I've had several blood tests including for under-active thyroid and they have all been clear. I've been really worried about all these problems and did some research and came up with this site. I am beginning to think my problems stemm from taking 40mg Simvastatins so am going to stop them and book appointment with GP. Any comments/advice would be appreciated.

I have muscle pain, weakness, and chronic lower back pain. Started statin drug, Simvastatin, on 11/21/07. I take no other drugs. Within two weeks, I could not sit without severe lower back pain. Reported problem to family medical doctor on 1/11/08. M.D. sent me to physical therapy for 8 sessions. No relief from physical therapy so I requested an X-ray on 3/20/08. X-ray shows very mild degeneration at one lower vertebrae. M.D. sent me to an orthopaedics doctor who recommended continued physical therapy. Went to a Chiropractor instead. After six chiropractic sessions with little relief, I made an appointment with an Osteopathic doctor. My M.D. sent me to a rheumatologist who prescribed high dose naproxen for two weeks. The rheumatologist ordered and X-ray of my lower back area. The lower back X-ray produced no negatives. The rheumatologist's next step will be to order and MRI of my lower back area. The D.O. suspects statin induced myopathy and because of hyper reflexes he ordered an MRI of my brain and cervical spine. I am now recommended to a neurologist who specializes in the diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. Am I getting the run around? Only one doctor said I might have statin induced myopathy. The rest will not even mention the statin drug theory. I just pray for ache and pain relief. I have some improvement after four months off of the statin which I believe is quite a strong point that it was the statin drug and not some unknown condition. I don't think arthritis or MS conditions improve. All I know is that I had no health issues before taking the simvastatin. Good luck to everyone who has or is taking a statin drug. BEWARE!!!

I have been taking simvastatin since June 28, 2008. I am 44 years old and have always been majorly active with my 17 year old daughter. Recently I have become chronically fatigued so much as to want to go back to bed within 2-3 hours after I get up in the morning, (definitely not me). I have felt spaced out,depressed to the point of wanting to cry all the time, have severe back, hip, knee, leg, and hand pain. I go to pain management for my back and hip problems (past surgery), but the usual pain has been intensified over the last 2 months and I wasn't sure why, until i decided to check out the Simvastatin to see if it has made me put on a few pounds, and boy have my eyes been opened!!!!!!!!! I AM STOPPING THE MEDICATION IMMEDIATELY!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks to all who have spoken up, I wish I would of checked on this sooner!!!!! I'm calling my Dr. first thing in the morning!!!!!!!!!!!

By exhausted in Canton

I was prescribed Simvastatin four days ago, against my wishes, as I had heard about the side effects of muscle pain and numbness in the joints and feet. However, what I had not expected were the terrible nightmarish dreams that followed. On the fourth night I stopped taking Simvastin as I was literally too afraid to go to sleep.
I then slept fitfully but did not experience the vivid and disturbing dreams of the previous three nights.
I shall ask my doctor for alternative medication. If she cannot offer me anything other than statins, I shall stick to Benecol and research further!

Jacqui M.

I have been on Simvastatin for some years and increasingly felt tired to the point of fatigue, had muscle pain in my legs, arms, neck and back and also gained weight.
After reading an article in a British newspaper I linked my symptoms with taking these tablets and, just over a week ago, I stopped taking them.
I already feel much better. The aches and pains are subsiding and I don't feel so tired. No weight loss yet but I live in hope!
I will be seeing my GP soon and I intend to show him this website.
Good luck everyone - I hope your health improves soon!

I just spent 3 days in the hospital due to taking simvastatin.
I was having weakness in my legs and arms, to the point that I could not walk up steps. I finally went into emergency when I took an attack that resembled a heart attack, shortness of breath, cold sweat, trembling and
nausea. They flushed my body with saline solution for two days. I now have the use of my legs, but am very weak.

aching elbows and knees within one week of starting simvastatin 40mg . Told by GP to stick with it . Now have severe muscle pain in arms . Wake up at night with severe pins and needles in hands and feet , which takes hours to pass . Muscle deterioration in upper arms . Overall tiredness . Doctor knows best.......I don't think so........stopped today , wish I'd never taken them .

raised liver enzymes,nausea ,amnesia,muscle pain in legs arms and hansdsanfeet are painful, skin irritation and rash have been taking simvastatin for about nine months

Started to take Simvastatin, 40mg/day, 3 mts ago. Since a month got muscle pain in left arm, dizziness, skin being dry and more. I quit taking them on April 17th and the day after pain was gone and other symptoms as well. I know it seem weird but feel better now.

Hello: Posting about simvastatin. I have been off of the medication for about six weeks. Initially the symptoms led me to hop on an ambulance gurney and visit my local ER due to dizziness, lots of palpitations, and the feeling that I was going to drop on the sidewalk. I followed the ER with two days on the heart unit, and have pretty much have had just about every test but a brain scan (or at least it has seemed that way).

My symptoms progressed to intense burning in my torso, pronounced in the shoulder blade areas, upper chest, and into my forearms. A week after stopping the statin much of the intense burning was gone.

I still have pain and discomfort, but I have not been "white knuckling" to get through the nights like I had been, which is a relief. I read somewhere that someone described the muscle pain as feeling like he had been repeatedly punched with a bag of oranges. I can relate to that feeling, and recently I have felt the symptoms in my thighs as well.

Pain management takes up my days (although I have continued to work). I have begun massage therapy, and I am going to attempt acupuncture next week. I am trying to sort out what supplements may be the best and which ones won't interact with each other or other medications that I take. I am taking CoQ10, Omega 3 capsules, a multivitamin, and a B complex.

Anyone with similar symptoms or comments, please jump in. We are in similar boats, as they say. I have gotten the impression that some people out there (not on this site) don't see this as real. For those people, unless someone is bleeding profusely from an artery, they remain non-supportive or non-believers....

Has anyone had hair loss? I have been on Simvastatin for 30 days adn I noticed hair loss.

Stomach cramps, night sweats which stopped when I forgot to take them on a long weekend away.