Pravastatin

Pravastatin, sold under the brand name Pravachol among others, is a statin medication, used preventing cardiovascular disease in those at high risk and treating abnormal lipids. It should be used together with diet changes, exercise, and weight loss. It is taken by mouth. Pravastatin, sold under the brand name Pravachol among others, is a statin medication, used preventing cardiovascular disease in those at high risk and treating abnormal lipids. It should be used together with diet changes, exercise, and weight loss. It is taken by mouth. Common side effects include joint pain, diarrhea, nausea, headaches, and muscle pains. Serious side effects may include rhabdomyolysis, liver problems, and diabetes. Use during pregnancy may harm the baby. Like all statins, pravastatin works by inhibiting HMG-CoA reductase, an enzyme found in liver that plays a role in producing cholesterol. Pravastatin was patented in 1980 and approved for medical use in 1989. It is available as a generic medication. In the United States the wholesale cost per dose is less than 0.20 USD as of 2018. In the United Kingdom it costs the NHS about a pound per dose. In 2016 it was the 27th most prescribed medication in the United States with more than 24 million prescriptions. Pravastatin is primarily used for the treatment of dyslipidemia and the prevention of cardiovascular disease. It is recommended to be used only after other measures, such as diet, exercise, and weight reduction, have not improved cholesterol levels. The evidence for the use of pravastatin is generally weaker than for other statins. The antihypertensive and lipid-lowering treatment to prevent heart attack trial (ALLHAT), failed to demonstrate a difference in all-cause mortality or nonfatal myocardial infarction/fatal coronary heart disease rates between patients receiving pravastatin 40 mg daily (a common starting dose) and those receiving usual care. Pravastatin has undergone over 112,000 patient-years of double-blind, randomized trials using the 40-mg, once-daily dose and placebos. These trials indicate pravastatin is well tolerated and displays few noncardiovascular abnormalities in patients. However, side effects may occur. A doctor should be consulted if symptoms such as heartburn or headache are severe and do not go away. These uncommon side effects should be promptly reported to the prescribing doctor or an emergency medical service: