FW: STATIN-INDUCED CARDIOMYOPATHY

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STATIN-INDUCED CARDIOMYOPATHY

INTRODUCTION TO THE CITIZEN’S PETITION ON STATINS

By H. Langsjoen, MD

http://www.redflagsweekly.com/features/2002_july08P.html

The medical profession has, after more than 30 years of excellent

propaganda, successfully created the wholly iatrogenic - " pseudo-disease "

dubbed " hypercholesterolemia " and the associated malady " cholesterol

neurosis " . After decades of dismal failure to cure this " disease " of numbers

with low fat diets and a host of cholesterol lowering drugs, the medical

profession stumbled upon the magic bullet, the cure for this dreaded

artificial disease - statins (HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors). First released

on the US market in 1987, statins have rapidly grown into one of the most

widely prescribed class of drugs in history. Statins do three things:

1. They block the body's ability to make cholesterol, thus lowering the

blood level of cholesterol, thereby curing cholesterol neurosis. Doctors and

patients equally neurotic have immediate gratification. The " evil " high

cholesterol has been dramatically lowered and the future is bright and

promising. So far...so good.

2. Unrelated to their cholesterol lowering, statins have been found to have

anti-inflammatory, plaque-stabilizing properties which have a slight benefit

in coronary heart disease.

3. Statins kill people - lots of people - and they wound many, many more.

All patients taking statins become depleted in Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10),

eventually - those patients who start with a relatively low CoQ10 levels

(the elderly and patients with heart failure) begin to manifest

signs/symptoms of CoQ10 deficiency relatively rapidly - in 6 to 12 months.

Younger, healthier people who's only " illness " is the non-illness

" hypercholesterolemia " can tolerate statins for several years before getting

into trouble with fatigue, muscle weakness and soreness (usually with normal

muscle enzyme CPK tests) and most ominously - heart failure.

In my practice of 17 years in Tyler, Texas, I have seen a frightening

increase in heart failure secondary to statin usage, " statin

cardiomyopathy " . Over the past five years, statins have become more potent,

are being prescribed in higher doses, and are being used with reckless

abandon in the elderly and in patients with " normal " cholesterol levels. We

are in the midst of a CHF epidemic in the US with a dramatic increase over

the past decade. Are we causing this epidemic through our zealous use of

statins? In large part I think the answer is yes. We are now in a position

to witness the unfolding of the greatest medical tragedy of all time - never

before in history has the medical establishment knowingly (Merck & Co., Inc.

has two 1990 patents combining CoQ10 with statins to prevent CoQ10 depletion

and attendant side effects) created a life threatening nutrient deficiency

in millions of otherwise healthy people, only to then sit back with

arrogance and horrific irresponsibility and watch to see what happens - as I

see two to three new statin cardiomyopathies per week in my practice, I

cannot help but view my once great profession with a mixture of sorrow and

contempt.

Statin-induced CoQ10 depletion is the topic of a recent petition to the FDA

requesting that this drug/nutrient interaction be identified in a black box

warning as part of statin package insert information. A comprehensive review

of animal and human trials addressing this issue has been submitted to the

FDA as a supporting document. We, of course, do not expect any response from

the FDA, but 10 years from now when the full extent of statin toxicity

becomes painfully evident, at least we can, in good conscience, know that we

tried and who knows, sometimes small sparks may spread in dry grass.

See Also:

Cholesterol Drugs And The Depletion Of Coenzyme Q10: A Review Of Human And

Animal Data.

By H. Langsjoen, MD

http://www.fda.gov/ohrms/dockets/dailys/02/May02/052902/02p-0244-cp00001-02-

Exhibit_A-vol1.pdf

Suze Fisher

Lapdog Design, Inc.

Web Design & Development

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