Atorvastatin -- Could It Work For Anyone Else?

[jstefl]

I am reconsidering my previous statement that atorvastatin didn't help me. I never noticed any short term effects from it, but during the time I have been taking it, I have enjoyed improved health. I started the atorvastatin around 2005 and switched to rosuvastatin 20 mg about 3 years ago. I can say that I noticed no immediate improvements when I started the statins, but in the more than 15 years since I started them my health has generally improved. The changes have happened so slowly that I have barely noticed, and I have tried many things over the years. At this point I am only taking Equilibrant along with the statin and warfarin I am on.

I am far from being considered healthy, but have very slowly improved over time to where I am doing things today that I wouldn't have considered a few years ago. Is this due to the statins? Did they turn things around for me? Would I have continued to get worse if I hadn't needed the statins?

If you are looking for quick results I don't think that they work, but they may provide some relief over the long term if you are patient. My new answer would be " I don't know".

 

[Wishful]

Did they turn things around for me? Would I have continued to get worse if I hadn't needed the statins?

That's one of those questions that is really hard to ever answer. There are too many other factors involved to know which one was responsible. For treatments with short-term responses, you can test them repeatedly for statistical robustness. Not so with one-time experiments. We just have to make a judgement based on what information we do have.

 

[Kulandai]

Have been following the use of 3 statins. Pravastatin, Atorvastatin and Rosuvastatin. Not only do they inhibit the Fracktalkine receptors, they reduce the production of RANTES. RANTES is involved in signalling which allows for perpetual inflammation. Out of 7 that I know who have tried it, 6 have marked improvements and one none. So worth looking at for sure. It's easy to obtain and inexpensive and might help with another 15 to 30% improvement.

 

[Kulandai]

The use of statins results in an increase in Acetyl CoA involved in the TCA cycle and ATP production. Is this why fatigue levels are lowered?

 

[marcjf]

Have been following the use of 3 statins. Pravastatin, Atorvastatin and Rosuvastatin. Not only do they inhibit the Fracktalkine receptors, they reduce the production of RANTES. RANTES is involved in signalling which allows for perpetual inflammation. Out of 7 that I know who have tried it, 6 have marked improvements and one none. So worth looking at for sure. It's easy to obtain and inexpensive and might help with another 15 to 30% improvement.

I haven't heard about statins blocking RANTES, just fracktalkine. Is it effective at that?
Dr. Patterson has been prescribing a statin along with Maraviroc (a RANTES inhibitor), to cover both cytokines. If statins are able to inhibit both, there should not be a need for another medication.

Niacin also seems to play an important role in inhibiting these, as pointed out by this paper: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19781706/
Coincidentally, it also plays a key role in lowering cholesterol, and has been used a lot by Covid Long Haulers.

But then again, not sure how effective it is. If niacin worked well enough, nobody would ever get statins prescribed to them.

 

[Wishful]

If niacin worked well enough, nobody would ever get statins prescribed to them.

There are plenty of examples where an in vitro experiment using ridiculously high levels of something shows a slight benefit, and someone else spins the product as a miracle treatment, even though it has no noticeable effect in vivio at non-hazardous levels.

 

[Kulandai]

I haven't heard about statins blocking RANTES, just fracktalkine. Is it effective at that?
Dr. Patterson has been prescribing a statin along with Maraviroc (a RANTES inhibitor), to cover both cytokines. If statins are able to inhibit both, there should not be a need for another medication.

Niacin also seems to play an important role in inhibiting these, as pointed out by this paper: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19781706/
Coincidentally, it also plays a key role in lowering cholesterol, and has been used a lot by Covid Long Haulers.

But then again, not sure how effective it is. If niacin worked well enough, nobody would ever get statins prescribed to them.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5380490/

What we need is the effect of statins on CFS patients before and after treatment with a statin.. this is happening currently

 

[Kulandai]

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5380490/

What we need is the effect of statins on CFS patients before and after treatment with a statin.. this is happening currently

That is the effect on RANTES

 

[Kulandai]

That is the effect on RANTES

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25307674/

Above article suggests that Rosuvastatin reduces RANTES, am aware of 3 persons showing benefits with this

 

[Winston613]

There is a woman in a long haul group on fb ghat started taking atorvastatin and within a day her symptoms are completely resolved. She goes from bedridden to up and cooking, says she feels amazing.
I actually tried it for my cfs not realizing the pills were 80 mg. I’m now doing a smaller trial of 10 mg and it’s day two and definitely seeing improvements. I have cfs for 16 years and now long haul. It seems to be helping both.

 

[Kulandai]

There is a woman in a long haul group on fb ghat started taking atorvastatin and within a day her symptoms are completely resolved. She goes from bedridden to up and cooking, says she feels amazing.
I actually tried it for my cfs not realizing the pills were 80 mg. I’m now doing a smaller trial of 10 mg and it’s day two and definitely seeing improvements. I have cfs for 16 years and now long haul. It seems to be helping both.

Was the woman taking 10mg too?
So you are taking Ator at 10mg for 2 days, please keep us informed

 

[Nat kea]

There is a woman in a long haul group on fb ghat started taking atorvastatin and within a day her symptoms are completely resolved. She goes from bedridden to up and cooking, says she feels amazing.
I actually tried it for my cfs not realizing the pills were 80 mg. I’m now doing a smaller trial of 10 mg and it’s day two and definitely seeing improvements. I have cfs for 16 years and now long haul. It seems to be helping both.

There is a woman in a long haul group on fb ghat started taking atorvastatin and within a day her symptoms are completely resolved. She goes from bedridden to up and cooking, says she feels amazing.
I actually tried it for my cfs not realizing the pills were 80 mg. I’m now doing a smaller trial of 10 mg and it’s day two and definitely seeing improvements. I have cfs for 16 years and now long haul. It seems to be helping both.

please keep us posted in this thread.

 

[2Cor.12:19]

There is a woman in a long haul group on fb ghat started taking atorvastatin and within a day her symptoms are completely resolved. She goes from bedridden to up and cooking, says she feels amazing.
I actually tried it for my cfs not realizing the pills were 80 mg. I’m now doing a smaller trial of 10 mg and it’s day two and definitely seeing improvements. I have cfs for 16 years and now long haul. It seems to be helping both.

@Winston613 are you still taking atorvastatin and is it still helping? I have a new prescription (10mg) my cardiologist prescribed for atherosclerosis. I’m nervous about side effects but hoping it may help my ME/CFS (I’ve had ME for 36 years)

 

[Dude]

In a Long Covid Facebook group I am in, a user (MECFS symptoms, 18 months long hauling) describes a cure after using maraviroc and atorvastatin. Similar to Hopeful, improvement started to show after just a few days. I wonder if atorvastatin played the major role in this? The drug is next on my list, which is why I came across this thread.

There is even a Trail running for Long Covid using Statins.
https://classic.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04801940

 

[Treeman]

I tried atorvastatin for about a month but didn't notice any improvement. I noticed my blood had thinned and consider that inflammation etc could still be in the blood causing the fatigue.

 

[Hoosierfans]

FWIW I’m throwing my hat in the ring on this experiment. I do not have LC. I have post mono ME/CFS since 2006 that has been progressive.

Lots more to my story, but the reason my immunologist and PCP and I decided to pursue a statin (and we will combine in w Plavix to start and then *maybe* Miraviroc) is that: (1) I test VERY high for platelet activation / vascular inflammation on Incellex’s panel; (2) I have a sunburn like sensation 24/7 all over my body which is most likely some kind of vasculitis; (3) among others, I have ETAR1 autoantibodies so my endothelium’s are under attack; (4) I have significant neuro symptoms (dizziness, memory loss), white lesions on a functional MRI (not MS) and an abnormal transcranial dopplar which all point to vasculitis.

We are starting VERY low — 5 mg / day of Crestor (Rosuvastatin) and 75 mg of Plavix (Clopidogrel).

 

[Hoosierfans]

I tried atorvastatin for about a month but didn't notice any improvement. I noticed my blood had thinned and consider that inflammation etc could still be in the blood causing the fatigue.

I’ve heard some people say that they didn’t feel better until they added the Maraviroc, which is a pretty potent anti-inflammatory. It might even be worth trying on its own.

Or, of course, any one of the myriad of other anti-inflammatories that are out there.

 

[ilivewithcfs]

I want to share my experience with atorvastatin. I've been living with cfs for years. Tried atorvastatin,it made me feel better very quick, within a couple of hours. I took 10 mg a day. Everything was great for a couple of weeks,then it started to give me insomnia,so I had to give it up. Right now I take it occasionally in case of a crash.

 

[andyguitar]

Everything was great for a couple of weeks,then it started to give me insomnia,so I had to give it up.

Did you take it late in the day? If so you might avoid insomnia by taking it late morning.

 

[ilivewithcfs]

Did you take it late in the day? If so you might avoid insomnia by taking it late morning.

No, I took it in the morning