What is the difference between zocor and vytorin

It also lowers your risk for sickness or death caused by cardiovascular disease problems with your heart and blood vessels. The active drugs in Vytorin work together in different ways to lower cholesterol. These active drugs are ezetimibe and simvastatin. Specifically, Vytorin works to lower levels of:. Vytorin is prescribed in combination with a low-cholesterol diet.

Cholesterol and triglycerides are two types of lipids. Several clinical studies have shown Vytorin to be effective in treating high cholesterol caused by primary hyperlipidemia. However, Vytorin has been studied in adults and children ages 10 years and older.

In a week study, Vytorin was compared with each of its active drugs simvastatin and ezetimibe taken separately. People took either Vytorin, simvastatin alone, ezetimibe alone, or a placebo. A placebo is a treatment with no active drug.

Additionally, in a 5-week study, Vytorin was compared with simvastatin alone. In one treatment group, people took a simvastatin dosage of 20 milligrams mg per day. Note: In clinical studies , simvastatin alone effectively lowered cholesterol levels. Compared with simvastatin alone, Vytorin lowers cholesterol levels more.

However, simvastatin also lowers your risk for heart attack , stroke , and sickness or death related to cardiovascular disease. These types of cholesterol include non-HDL cholesterol and apolipoprotein B. Other clinical studies have compared Vytorin with different statin drugs.

A statin is a type of cholesterol-lowering drug. Simvastatin, one of the active drugs in Vytorin, is a statin. In a 6-week study, Vytorin was compared with a statin drug called rosuvastatin Crestor. These results varied depending on the dosage of Vytorin or rosuvastatin that people took.

Studies have also compared Vytorin with a different statin drug, called atorvastatin Lipitor. HoFH is a rare genetic condition. With HoFH, you inherit abnormal genes from both of your parents. Having HoFH increases your risk for heart attack and stroke. Vytorin is typically an add-on therapy for HoFH. This is a procedure in which your blood is passed through a machine that filters out LDL cholesterol. In this study, people had been taking 40 mg of simvastatin.

Simvastatin is one of the active drugs in Vytorin. One group of people switched to a higher simvastatin dose, of 80 mg. Vytorin is FDA-approved for use in children ages 10 years and older. Vytorin is approved to treat certain forms of high cholesterol. If you have a very high cholesterol level, your doctor might have you take Vytorin with certain other cholesterol-lowering drugs. The other treatments your doctor recommends for you may depend on your risk for heart attack and stroke , and what form of high cholesterol you have.

Other types of cholesterol-lowering drugs that your doctor may prescribe for you to take with Vytorin include:. Bile acid sequestrant drugs work by removing bile acids from the body. This causes your body to make more bile acids by breaking down cholesterol, which lowers your cholesterol levels.

Vytorin can cause mild or serious side effects. The following lists contain some of the key side effects that may occur while taking Vytorin. For more information about the possible side effects of Vytorin, talk with your doctor or pharmacist.

They can give you tips on how to deal with any side effects that may be bothersome. Most of these side effects may go away within a few days or a couple of weeks.

Call your doctor right away if you have serious side effects. Vytorin is approved for use in children ages 10 years and older. Side effects of Vytorin in children ages 10 years and older are similar to those seen in adults, as described above and below. You may wonder how often certain side effects occur with Vytorin.

Below are details about certain side effects this drug may cause. As with most drugs, some people can have an allergic reaction after taking Vytorin. However, allergic reactions have been reported since the drug was released onto the market.

A more severe allergic reaction is rare but possible. Symptoms of a severe allergic reaction can include:. Call your doctor right away if you have an allergic reaction to Vytorin, as the reaction could become severe. Some people may have muscle pain while taking Vytorin. In some clinical studies , people took either Vytorin or a placebo for approximately 7 months. In these studies, muscle pain occurred in:.

Muscle pain and muscle weakness can be a symptom of myopathy muscle damage. Myopathy is a known side effect of all statin drugs, including simvastatin one of the active drugs in Vytorin.

Your risk for muscle pain or myopathy while taking Vytorin is highest during your first year of taking the drug. But after the first year, your risk for these side effects gets lower as you continue taking the drug. For example, in a long-term clinical study , myopathy occurred in:. And some groups of people have a higher risk for muscle damage while taking Vytorin.

Note: Muscle pain and weakness may also be signs of a serious side effect of Vytorin called immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy. This is an overactive immune system response that causes muscle cell death. Immune-mediated necrotizing myopathy is a rare side effect of statin drugs, including simvastatin one of the active drugs in Vytorin. Call your doctor right away if you have any unusual muscle pain, tenderness, or weakness while taking Vytorin.

Muscle problems with other symptoms, such as fever, can sometimes be a sign of a more serious side effect called rhabdomyolysis. If you have muscle problems while taking Vytorin, your doctor may recommend a creatinine phosphokinase CPK blood test. CPK is an enzyme a type of protein that helps with muscle function. Having high levels of CPK can be a sign of muscle damage. If you have high CPK or other symptoms of muscle damage, your doctor will usually recommend that you stop taking Vytorin.

Muscle pain and weakness usually gets better after you stop taking Vytorin. But tell your doctor if you continue to have these symptoms after you stop taking Vytorin. Having increased liver enzymes is a possible side effect of Vytorin. And this can be a sign of liver damage. Liver enzymes are proteins that help your liver function. Vytorin can sometimes cause liver damage.

And if cells in your liver are damaged, liver enzymes can leak into your bloodstream. This shows up as increased liver enzymes in blood tests called liver function tests. In clinical studies , increased liver enzymes occurred in 1. In a long-term clinical study , increased liver enzymes occurred in:. As you continue to take Vytorin, your liver enzymes tend to return to normal levels. However, sometimes increased liver enzymes can be a sign of more serious damage to your liver.

Before you start taking Vytorin, your doctor will order liver function tests to check your liver enzyme levels. You may also have liver function tests during your Vytorin treatment. Call your doctor right away if you have any symptoms of liver damage while taking Vytorin.

These symptoms may include:. If you have any of these symptoms, your doctor will order liver function tests to check your liver enzymes. If the tests show a problem with your liver, your doctor will usually recommend that you stop taking Vytorin.

Some people may have alopecia hair loss or thinning while taking Vytorin. Alopecia has also been reported in people taking simvastatin and ezetimibe since these drugs were released. Simvastatin and ezetimibe are the active drugs in Vytorin. Memory loss may occur while taking Vytorin. But simvastatin , one of the active drugs in Vytorin, is a statin. And problems with memory have been reported as a side effect of simvastatin as well as other statin drugs.

In some cases, memory problems have developed within a few days after starting a statin drug. In other cases, memory problems have developed after people have been taking a statin drug for years.

Most memory problems get better within a few weeks after stopping statin treatment. If you have memory problems while taking Vytorin, talk with your doctor. They may recommend switching to a different treatment. Some people may have depression while taking Vytorin. Depression has also been reported in people taking simvastatin and ezetimibe since these drugs were released. And if you have symptoms of depression while taking Vytorin, tell your doctor right away.

Typically, your doctor will start you on a low dosage. Your doctor will ultimately prescribe the smallest dosage that provides the desired effect.

The following information describes dosages that are commonly used or recommended. However, be sure to take the dosage your doctor prescribes for you. Your doctor will determine the best dosage to fit your needs. The active drugs in Vytorin are ezetimibe and simvastatin. Vytorin is approved to treat certain types of high cholesterol when used with a low-cholesterol diet.

Vytorin is approved to treat high cholesterol caused by homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia HoFH. For this use, Vytorin is prescribed with a low-cholesterol diet, and is typically added on to other cholesterol-lowering treatments. The recommended dosages of Vytorin for children ages 10 years and over are the same as for adults.

These dosages are described above. If you miss a dose of Vytorin, skip that dose and take your next dose as usual the following evening. Do not take a double dose to make up for a missed dose.

This can include setting an alarm on your phone or downloading a reminder app. A kitchen timer can work, too. Vytorin is meant to be taken as a long-term treatment. Other drugs are available that can treat certain forms of high cholesterol. Some may be a better fit for you than others.

They can tell you about other medications that may work well for you. You may wonder how Vytorin compares with other medications that are prescribed for similar uses. Here we look at how Vytorin and Lipitor are alike and different. Vytorin contains two active drugs: ezetimibe and simvastatin. March Efficacy and safety of ezetimibe co-administered with simvastatin compared with atorvastatin in adults with hypercholesterolemia.

Am J Cardiol. Ezetimibe coadministered with simvastatin in patients with primary hypercholesterolemia. J Am Coll Cardiol ;— Treatment of high-risk patients with ezetimibe plus simvastatin co-administration versus simvastatin alone to attain National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III low-density lipoprotein cholesterol goals. Efficacy and safety of ezetimibe coadministered with simvastatin in patients with primary hypercholesterolemia: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

Mayo Clin Proc. Dose-comparison study of the combination of ezetimibe and simvastatin Vytorin versus atorvastatin in patients with hypercholesterolemia: the Vytorin Versus Atorvastatin VYVA study. Am Heart J. Zocor simvastatin. Whitehouse Station, N. August Each update provides an independent review of a new medication by authors who have no financial association with the drug manufacturer.

The series coordinator is Allen F. Shaughnessy, Pharm. This content is owned by the AAFP. Information from the National Library of Medicine Choosing to participate in a study is an important personal decision. Spanish speakers will not be available for the follow-up calls. Contacts and Locations. Information from the National Library of Medicine To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the contact information provided by the sponsor.

Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials. More Information. Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus dyslipidemia adolescents. National Library of Medicine U. National Institutes of Health U. Department of Health and Human Services. The safety and scientific validity of this study is the responsibility of the study sponsor and investigators.

Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus Dyslipidemia. Phase 2. Study Type :.