As my cholesterol sticks stubbornly around 5, I have decided that I really should start taking statins....tonight! Which is 7 days before my next INR check.....I have been very resistant to this for ages.
The Locum GP recently described me as "high risk" so I am thinking I really ought to give them a try.
However, having read AGAIN, the warnings......the leaflet suggests I should talk to my doctor, nurse etc., BEFORE taking them, if I have an Under-active Thyroid (which I do, and take 50 mg Thyroxine a day), so now I am having second thoughts to delay again!
I have Permanent AF and on Bisoprolol 1.5 a day, plus Warfarin, of course.
I am not confident with GP's prescribing anyway......
Written by
Wightbaby
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I would ask you to bear in mind I have no formal medical training but knowing a number of people with thyroid problems, others with cholesterol problems and some with both. Untreated or undertreated hypothyroidism can cause elevated cholesterol levels. As a result statins are not recommended until the hypothyroidism is treated and stable. If cholesterol remains elevated then statins can be tried.
Cholesterol may come down further with extreme dietary measures but many find the style of diet unpalatable!
You still have to watch what you eat with statins ,I’ve found that out , I’m on 80mg a day and my cholesterol is still between 4/5 and won’t come down any lower , it would be much higher if I didn’t continue to watch my weight , and yes I agree with you , it’s very depressing ..
In the UK cholesterol levels are measured in mmol/L. Target levels are below 5 for a healthy person and below 4 for those at greater risk (family history, diabetes, elevated blood pressure, kidney problems, cardiac history, etc.).
Okay that is 193mg/dl and on my bloodwork sheet it describes 190-239 as a moderate risk, assuming you are referring to total. Why would you rush to take statins?
Well personally I would have a lot more tests before I would rush to statins. Cholesterol levels are not the be all in terms of CVD/HA risk, even when used in conjunction with genes.
My hubby had a heart attack 20 years ago so I decided this year to make an appointment with his cardiologist to get a “baseline” check on my cardio health-especially after our GP suggested going on a statin because my cholesterol was at 200 (USA reading meaning borderline).
There is now a test that can actually see if there is plaque build up in your arteries-coronary calcium scan. The scan can detect plaque build up. Prior to the test our cardiologist told if the test results was 0 no need to take a statin. Anything above that I needed a statin. My results came back 0 so no statins needed! The test here in the States isn’t covered by insurance and cost $100. It takes about 10 minutes and is similar to getting an MRI. Scans your heart and its arteries.
I’m comfortable with not taking a statin. I eat a healthy diet, exercise and don’t have a family history of cardiac disease.
Sometimes I find it interesting and comical in a weird kind of way-the GP sends you to a specialist and then turns around and ignores the specialist’s recommendation.
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