Daily Medication Pearl: Atorvastatin Calcium (Lipitor)

Indication: Lipitor is an inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase (statin) indicated as an adjunct therapy to diet to treat high cholesterol and triglyceride levels and reduce the risk of myocardial infarction, stroke, revascularization procedures, and angina in patients without coronary heart disease, but with multiple risk factors.

Insight:

• Dosing: Dose range 10 to 80 mg once daily.
• Dosage forms: 10, 20, 40, and 80 mg tablets
• Adverse events: The most reported adverse events (incidence ≥ 2%) in patients treated with Lipitor in placebo-controlled trials regardless of causality were nasopharyngitis, arthralgia, diarrhea, pain in extremity, and urinary tract infection.
• Mechanism of action: Lipitor is a selective, competitive inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, the rate-limiting enzyme that converts 3-hydroxy-3­ methylglutaryl-coenzyme A to mevalonate, a precursor of sterols, including cholesterol.
• Manufacturer: Pfizer

Source: label (fda.gov)