Zocor Injury Lawyers

Zocor and Statins - Warnings and Recalls

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued multiple warnings related to statin drugs and the role those drugs play in causing kidney failure. Unfortunately, Zocor, manufactured by Merck & Co., has yet to be recalled, even though users of the cholesterol-lowering drug have sustained kidney damage resulting from rhabdomyolysis.

Zocor was approved by the FDA in 1991, but it wasn't until 2008 that the FDA first warned against an increased risk of suffering from rhabdomyolysis for those who used the drug. Most recently, based on results garnered from the Heart Protection Study 2 (HSP2), an ongoing clinical trial, the FDA advised that Zocor users of Chinese decent who are taking any niacin-containing products should not take simvastatin (generic name for Zocor) at 80 mg, and that all others who are taking a niacin-containing product should be cautious when taking simvastatin dosages of 40 mg or higher. Ultimately, the FDA has warned against higher doses of Zocor and other simvastatin drugs, citing an increased risk of suffering from myopathy, which could lead to rhabdomyolysis, for those who take the drug.

In addition to Merck's Zocor, other statin-based drugs that may be known to cause adverse side effects are:

• Merck's Mevacor
• Pfizer's Lipitor
• Bristol-Myers Squibb's Pravachol
• Novartis's Lescol
• AstraZenaca's Crestor

In 2001, Bayer's Baycol (cerivastatin) was recalled when it was linked to 31 users becoming afflicted with rhabdomyolysis and ultimately losing their lives. Today, Zocor has yet to be recalled, but is still a danger to consumers nevertheless. Zocor is also used in combination with other substances to create new drugs, namely Vytorin (a combo of Zocor and Zetia) and Simcor (a combo of Zocor and Niacin). Regardless of which statin combination is being used, all users of statin-based medications should be aware that taking high mg dosages can be more dangerous than beneficial in the long run.

The FDA has advised health care professionals to thoroughly review patient medical history before prescribing statin-based products, and encourages doctors and physicians to discuss both the benefits and risks of using statin drugs with their patients. A failure to do so puts patients at unnecessary risk, and such behavior could be labeled as physician negligence. In any event, If you've suffered as the result of taking an 80 mg dose of Zocor, please don't hesitate to contact the Zocor injury law firm of Anapol Schwartz. For more information and a free evaluation of your Zocor injury case, please call us today at 1-866-735-2792.

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