What Is Ezetimibe Used For? (Cont.)

 
Sitosterolemia
Sitosterolemia is a rare genetic condition in which plant sterols found in food are absorbed within the intestines in greater-than-normal amounts and then not removed as well as they normally are. This causes high levels of sitosterol and campesterol (which are types of plant sterols) in the blood. Over time, this can result in high cholesterol, deposits of cholesterol (known as xanthoma) in tendons and other parts of the body, early atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), and certain blood and liver problems.
 
Ezetimibe has been licensed to treat high levels of sitosterol and campesterol in the blood of people with sitosterolemia.
 

Understanding High Cholesterol Treatment

The main goal of any high cholesterol treatment is to lower your LDL cholesterol enough to reduce your risk of developing problems related to high cholesterol (see Effects of High Cholesterol). The higher your risk, the lower your LDL goal will be.
 
(Click High Cholesterol Risk to see a list of risk factors that may affect your cholesterol level and some general guidelines about ideal LDL cholesterol levels.)
 
Any cholesterol treatment begins with lifestyle changes (including weight loss, diet, and exercise). If lifestyle changes are not effective at lowering cholesterol to a good level, cholesterol medication, such as ezetimibe, may be necessary.
 

How Does Ezetimibe Work?

Ezetimibe is part of a class of drugs called cholesterol absorption inhibitors. As the name implies, ezetimibe blocks the absorption of cholesterol from the intestines into the blood. This results in less cholesterol entering the body.
 
The effects of ezetimibe also cause decreases in the following forms of cholesterol and fats:
  
Ezetimibe has little effect on HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) by itself.
 
(What Is Ezetimibe Used For? Continued: Page 3)

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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;