Category Archives: Heart Drugs

Statins Side Effects: Blurred Vision

Statins Side Effects. Statins may lower your bad cholesterol but what are its side effects that you should watch out for? We are republishing below the NHS.UK list of the common, uncommon, and rare statins side effects.

Common side effects may affect up to 1 in 10 people, uncommon side effects are reported among 1 in 100 people, while rare side effects may affect up to 1 in 1,000 patients.

The COMMON STATINS SIDE EFFECTS (may affect up to 1 in 10) include:

  • nosebleeds
  • sore throat
  • a runny or blocked nose (non-allergic rhinitis)
  • headache
  • feeling sick
  • problems with the digestive system, such as constipation, diarrhoea, indigestion or flatulence
  • muscle and joint pain
  • increased blood sugar level (hyperglycaemia)
  • an increased risk of diabetes

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St. Jude Defibrillator Wires Linked to 20-Plus Deaths — Study Says

More than 79,000 people in the United States and 49,000 abroad still have the implants with the faulty wires

Implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs): they’re lifesaving devices. Implanted in the chest to correct risky heart rhythms that can be fatal, they work by triggering electrical shocks to correct irregular heartbeats. Thin wires — known as leads — attach the defibrillator to the heart and are responsible for monitoring irregular beats, then triggering shocks to correct the irregularities when these occur.

But can defibrillators themselves be deadly? Yes, according to a new study by a prominent Minneapolis Heart Institute cardiologist published in a leading cardiology journal.

Defective wires or leads made by St. Jude Medical Inc. to connect defibrillators to hearts caused at least 20 patient deaths when they short-circuited, Dr. Robert Hauser says in an analysis published in the March 26 issue of the online journal, Heart Rhythm.

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Vorapaxar Blood Thinner Side Effects: Higher Risk of Internal Bleeding?

In limbo after mixed results, Merck blood clot drug stops heart attack with risk of bleeding

In one of the largest heart-drug studies ever conducted, the new drug Vorapaxar showed an impressive efficacy as a blood thinner — but with an increased risk for internal bleeding as a side effect, researchers said on March 24.

The new type of blood clot preventer being tested by Merck & Co has been hounded by bleeding concerns since January 2011. Then, a safety committee overseeing the 26,449-patient study said the new type of anti-platelet drug bore an increased bleeding risk — making it unsuitable for patients who had suffered a stroke.

The latest findings further cloud the future for Vorapaxar, which Merck had hoped might one day be a new blockbuster drug — because it works differently than the popular blood thinner Coumadin or aspirin. The drug is a thrombin receptor antagonist, a new class of experimental platelet-blocker drugs that work by stopping a process that normally allows the blood’s platelets to stick together and form clots.

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Xarelto Side Effects: Increased Bleeding?

Xarelto Side Effects. Physicians may soon add a new blood-thinning drug called Xarelto (rivaroxaban) to the standard treatment for people with “acute coronary syndrome”—and in doing so lower their risk for a subsequent heart attack or stroke, or death.

Acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is an umbrella term covering the conditions of angina and a prior history of heart attack.

“It seems a good chance that the drug will soon be approved for treatment following an acute coronary syndrome,” said Dr. Simeon Margolis, on Dec. 9 in his blog, “Your Best Health After 50” published regularly by Yahoo! Health.

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