What Is Ezetimibe Used For?

Many people wonder, "What is ezetimibe used for?" Ezetimibe is a prescription drug that is used to treat high cholesterol and a rare genetic condition called sitosterolemia. The medication works by blocking the absorption of cholesterol from the intestines into the blood. It is effective at lowering total cholesterol and "bad cholesterol" -- and can also slightly decrease triglycerides -- but has little effect on "good cholesterol" by itself. In people with sitosterolemia, ezetimibe is used to treat high levels of sitosterol and campesterol in the blood.

Ezetimibe Medication

What Is Ezetimibe Used For? -- An Overview

Ezetimibe (Zetia^®) is a prescription medication that has been licensed to treat several conditions. These ezetimibe uses include:

Treatment of high cholesterol (hypercholesterolemia), taken either alone or in combination with other cholesterol medications
Treatment of a rare genetic condition called sitosterolemia.

High Cholesterol Treatment

Ezetimibe is used for treating high cholesterol in people who cannot lower their cholesterol through lifestyle changes alone. Ezetimibe can lower total cholesterol and LDL ("bad cholesterol") but has little effect on HDL ("good cholesterol"). The medication is often used in combination with other cholesterol-lowering drugs such as statins (Lipitor^®, Crestor^®, Zocor^®, Pravachol^®, Lescol^®, Mevacor^®) or fenofibrate (Antara^®, Tricor^®, Lipofen^®, Triglide^®, Lofibra^®).

When used in combination with atorvastatin (Lipitor^®) or simvastatin (Zocor^®), ezetimibe is also approved for treating high cholesterol due to the genetic disorder known as homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia.

(What Is Ezetimibe Used For? Continued: Page 2)