The 69-year-old Lao Bai, as an engineer, is not old, although he is retired, he still goes to re-hire, leading a group of young people to do the project well.
Doing engineering is inevitably staggered with the big bosses at the wine table, although Lao Bai is old, but he also takes the lead, and is not inferior to young people at the wine table.
However, in the following period, Lao Bai experienced muscle pain and muscle weakness from time to time.
At first, he didn't take it seriously. As a result, gradually he developed symptoms of low back pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, jaundice and other symptoms for a while, and he couldn't even walk a short flight of stairs at his worst, and lost 5 pounds of weight in a week.
Before prescribing the drug, the doctor conducted a number of examinations, and one examination found that the aminotransferase reached 880U/L, which had liver damage and was accompanied by the risk of kidney failure.
Such a high concentration of aminotransferases puzzled the doctors, who decided to immediately perform further tests to determine the cause of the liver damage. They arranged for liver ultrasound and blood tests to look for possible viral infections or other diseases. Nothing came of it.
In an in-depth conversation with Lao Bai, the doctor learned the truth. Lao Bai has always had the problem of high cholesterol, so he has been taking atorvastatin calcium for a long time to control a slight increase in cholesterol. It was this statin that made Lao Bai suffer a lot this time.
Statins are commonly used to prevent cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and lower cholesterol, but they are not a panacea. Therefore, for friends who have been taking statins for a long time, doctors will generally give advice.
First, it's important to regularly check and monitor the effectiveness of your treatment after taking statins. By detecting side effects early and adjusting the treatment regimen in time, it is effective to avoid the deterioration of the situation. Generally speaking, the following items need to be checked.
1. Check blood lipids
The very purpose of statin use is to lower blood lipids, especially LDL cholesterol, which affects cardiovascular health.
Therefore, friends who have been taking statins for a long time should check their blood lipid levels regularly and follow the doctor's advice on increasing or decreasing the dosage according to the actual blood lipid status.
2. Check kidney function
People who use statins for a long time may have an increased risk of having myoglobinuria, a condition that can lead to kidney damage, disability and death.
The purpose of a kidney function test is to monitor whether the kidneys are able to effectively remove waste products from the body. If the kidneys have problems with waste and excess water accumulating in the body, kidney function can be impaired. Therefore, friends who have been taking statins for a long time need to have their kidney function checked regularly to ensure that the drugs have not had adverse effects on the kidneys.
3. Check your blood sugar
Among statins, there are statins, such as atorvastatin, because these drugs affect insulin secretion and sensitivity (i.e., whether the secreted insulin does what it wants), leading to an imbalance in the regulation of blood sugar.
After taking it, it may cause abnormal blood sugar metabolism, which can easily cause fasting blood sugar to spike, worsen the condition of diabetic patients and cause complications.
When taking medication, especially if you have diabetes, you should have your blood sugar level checked regularly to prevent high blood sugar from causing harm to your body.
In general, fasting blood glucose should be measured before taking the drug, postprandial blood glucose should be measured every 3 months after taking the drug, and glycosylated hemoglobin should be measured if necessary to reflect long-term blood glucose control.
4. Muscle examination function
Lao Bai once couldn't even go up a short flight of stairs because because statins inhibit coenzyme synthesis in muscles, resulting in impaired muscle energy metabolism.
Lao Bai's muscle function has been damaged, and the muscles are weak, so it will become a problem when it is so easy to climb the stairs.
Therefore, regular check-ups should be done 1-3 months before and after taking the drug, and if there are problems such as fatigue and muscle aches during the course of taking the drug, you should go to the hospital to check the creatine kinase level.
If the index exceeds the upper limit of normal by more than 10 times, the situation is quite dangerous, and in severe cases, it can cause rhabdomyolysis, that is, the muscle is dissolved, and in severe cases, it can even cause acute renal failure that causes muscle inflammation and necrosis.
Therefore, when taking statins, friends should pay more attention to whether they have unexplained muscle pain, and if so, they should seek medical attention in time.
5. Check liver function
Long-term use of statins may have adverse effects on liver function, and the most common indicator is elevated aminotransferase levels. Lao Bai is a typical example, after the examination of aminotransferases as high as 880U/L, at the same time there is liver damage.
This is because when statins are metabolized in the liver, they produce some toxic metabolites that cause some damage to the liver. Therefore, when taking statins, doctors generally recommend going to the hospital for the 1st, 3rd, and 6th month of initial statin therapy to check whether your liver function is normal.
If there is no abnormality, it can be rechecked every six months in the future. On the other hand, if there is an abnormality, the doctor will adjust the dosage or change the medicine according to his own judgment.
In addition, many drugs have some contraindications when taking them, and statins are no exception.
Below, we will introduce some contraindications when taking statins.
1. Grapefruit and other citrus fruits
Autumn and winter are the seasons for citrus and grapefruit fruits, but these fruits are rich in a substance called naringin, which inhibits the metabolism of statins in the liver.
Consuming these fruits while taking statins can easily lead to increased concentrations of statins in the blood, which can lead to muscle pain, liver damage, and other problems. Therefore, when taking statins, it is best to avoid grapefruit and other citrus fruits.
2. High-fat and high-cholesterol foods
Statins themselves are taken to lower cholesterol levels in the body. At this time, if we also consume too many high-fat and high-cholesterol foods in our diet, such as fatty meat, cream, egg yolks, etc., then the effect of statins cannot be achieved, and it may even lead to an increase in cholesterol levels.
So, when taking statins, you should eat a low-fat, low-cholesterol meal, just like that.
3. Alcohol
Lao Bai's back pain is mainly due to the fact that he drank alcohol while taking statins. Taking statins can cause a certain burden on the liver.
And we all know that alcohol can also have some bad effects on the liver. If you still take statins and alcohol at the same time, the damage to the liver will be doubled, and it may even lead to serious consequences such as hepatitis, cirrhosis, and liver failure. Therefore, when taking statins, don't drink alcohol if you shouldn't drink it.
But there are also foods that promote our physical health while taking statins, and for these foods, friends can pay more attention to these foods
1. Foods that contain fiber
We take statins to lower cholesterol levels, and foods containing fiber happen to have this effect, which can be used as part of dietary therapy to assist the drug.
And the soluble fiber commonly found in sweet potatoes even has a cholesterol-lowering effect. So friends can increase their intake of these foods.
2. Foods containing Omega-3 fatty acids
Not all fats are bad fats. Fats like omega-3 fatty acids have a variety of benefits for heart health.
They can reduce the risk of arrhythmias and improve overall heart health. Fish like mackerel, cod and salmon are rich in omega-3s. Friends in need can also directly buy cod liver oil rich in Omega-3 for consumption.
Lao Bai's story is a wake-up call, reminding us that when taking statins, we must pay attention to regular check-ups to ensure the safe use of drugs.
Of course, as long as you can take the medicine according to the doctor's instructions, the side effects can be avoided. Therefore, friends must listen to the doctor's instructions to take the medicine on time and in the right amount.