Side Effects of Ezetimibe/Simvastatin

Common Ezetimibe/Simvastatin Side Effects

Ezetimibe/simvastatin has been studied extensively in clinical trials, with more than 3,800 people having been evaluated. In these studies, side effects are always documented and compared to side effects that occurred in a similar group of people taking a placebo (a "sugar pill" with no active ingredients). Based on these studies, the most common side effects of ezetimibe/simvastatin included:
 
  • Headache -- in up to 5.8 percent of people
  • Diarrhea -- up to 5 percent
  • Upper respiratory infection, such as the common cold -- up to 5 percent of people
  • Muscle pain, known medically as myalgia -- up to 3.6 percent of people (see Vytorin and Muscle Pain)
  • Flu -- up to 2.3 percent of people
  • Pain, including back pain -- up to 2.3 percent of people
  • Pain in an extremity (arm or leg) -- up to 2.3 percent.
     
Other reported side effects of the combination drug, or simvastatin or ezetimibe alone, include but are not limited to:
 

Final Thoughts on Side Effects

You may experience some or none of these ezetimibe/simvastatin side effects. There is no way for your healthcare provider to know beforehand whether you will have side effects from a medicine that you have never tried. Therefore, let your healthcare provider know if you experience any side effects or develop something that "just does not seem right." While it may not be a side effect of ezetimibe/simvastatin, your healthcare provider will be able to diagnose and treat the problem.
 

Add
Email
Print
Pages:

Previous 1 2

Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;
Other Articles in This eMedTV Presentation