Complain about a product or service

The Vytorin Study: A Doctor's Advice

Every drug has risks and benefits; Vytorin's no exception

By Henry J. Fishman, M.D.
ConsumerAffairs.com

January 14, 2008    Spanish

Vytorin • Doctors Warned About Vytorin • Study Casts Doubt on Cholesterol Drug Vytorin • The Vytorin Study: A Doctor's Advice --- Complaints • Consumer Complaints

A whole lotta confusion. That’s what a recent study of an expensive cholesterol lowering drug called Vytorin caused … and if you’re on it, you’d better talk to your doctor about it.

Researchers took a look at a small group of folks with genetically high cholesterol. They gave half Vytorin and half an inexpensive cholesterol-lowering drug.

Since Vytorin lowers cholesterol in two ways – by blocking production in your liver and by decreasing absorption from your food -- researchers were so positive it would help, they called the study the “Excel Study.”

Vytorin excelled all right, but not as much as the experts hoped.

It lowered total cholesterol and LDL’s -- the bad cholesterol -- far more than the generic, which is good because the lower your LDL’s, the lower your risk of heart trouble.

However, Vytorin did not decrease the amount of plaque in the patients’ neck arteries. This sent the stock of its Merck and Co, and Schering-Plough Corp, the drugs manufacturers, tumbling, and started a chorus of boos against Vytorin and other expensive prescription drugs in the press and among experts.

Warranted? Not completely.

Vytorin did lower LDL’s and the the plaque in neck arteries is tough to study and measure. Also, Vytorin’s effect on your risk of heart attack, stroke and death is not clear. It needs to be studied more.

What to do?

Talk to your doctor about the study and which cholesterol drug is right for you. They each have different benefits and risks. An individualized program of diet, exercise and medicine is the best way to prevent heart trouble.

Report Your Experience
If you've had a bad experience -- or a good one -- with a consumer product or service, we'd like to hear about it. All complaints are reviewed by class action attorneys and are considered for publication on our site. Knowledge is power! Help spread the word. File your consumer report now.