Lipitor (Atorvastatin) for Heart Disease

Overview
Lipitor is a prescription drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to reduce the risk for myocardial infarction (heart attack), stroke, angina, and coronary artery bypass in people with high risk factors. Lipitor is an adjunctive therapy to a low-fat diet. Lipitor is also known by its drug name, Atorvastatin.

Lipitor is a statin. Statins are believed to work by stopping the body from producing cholesterol and promoting the reabsorption of existing cholesterol.

How do I take it?
Lipitor is generally taken once daily.

Lipitor comes in tablet form.

Side effects
The FDA-approved label for Lipitor lists common side effects including cold symptoms, joint pain, pain in extremities, diarrhea, and urinary tract infection.

Rare but serious side effects listed for Lipitor include myopathy and rhabdomyolysis, which are types of muscle damage.

For answers to frequently asked questions about exposure to statins during pregnancy and breastfeeding, visit the experts at MothertoBaby.org.

For more details about this treatment, visit:
Lipitor – Pfizer
http://www.lipitor.com/

Statins – MedlinePlus
https://medlineplus.gov/statins.html