While statins reduce overall dementia due to beneficial effects on blood vessels, some people may experience memory loss with certain statins, which seems to be reversible by changing to a different one.
Dear Dr. Roach: I am a 74-year-old woman who is five foot three, 120 pounds. I live a healthy, active lifestyle. At age 59, during a regular doctor appointment, I was told that I had unknowingly had a heart attack. I had an angiogram, which showed no blockages. I was also given a nuclear imaging test to ascertain if there were any blockages in the smaller arteries to the heart. There were none. It was several weeks before I was cleared to resume physical exercise.
I have heard there is some evidence that statins can adversely affect dementia. What are your thoughts?Vasospastic angina, also called variant angina, is a cause of chest pain in both women and men due to low blood flow when the blood vessels to the heart constrict. Heart attacks often happen in combination with blockages in the arteries to the heart, but they can occur with no blockages at all.
Statin drugs like atorvastatin have been proven to help prevent a coronary spasm, so it does help prevent symptoms . It would be best for you to keep taking it, but I understand why you would be concerned if it really did increase the risk of dementia. On the other hand, some people taking certain statins may have memory effects as a result of the statin. Although memory loss is not a common side effect, when it is reported, it’s almost always with “lipophilic” statins like atorvastatin and simvastatin. It’s almost never with “hydrophilic” statins like pravastatin and rosuvastatin. I tend to prescribe rosuvastatin preferentially because of this concern with new patients, but I do not change my patients who are doing well on atorvastatin.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Your Good Health: Patient with paradoxical vocal cord motion seeks new remedyIf you know the trigger for symptoms, avoid them. Also specialized speech-language therapy can help.
Read more »
Your Good Health: Patient seems unsure of ALS diagnosisNo treatments for ALS that can stop the progression of this fatal disease.
Read more »
Your Good Health: Brown semen usually doesn’t present a health concernOne might argue that in absence of symptoms beyond what reader has, treatment may not be necessary
Read more »
Why deathbed dreams and visions can be a comfort for the dying — and those left behindCynthia Good, her mother Charlotte Good, and her younger sister Sherry Good, in 1961.
Read more »
THE BOOK SHELF: Patient advocate helps readers navigate health-care systemExplore stories from Atlantic Canada.
Read more »
Kaiser Health System Sent Private Patient Data to Tech GiantsThe giant California-based health plan Kaiser Permanente said its websites and apps may have inappropriately sent members’ private information to tech giants including Alphabet Inc., Microsoft Corp. and the social media company X.
Read more »