AI Article Synopsis

  • HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins), commonly used in primary care, can cause side effects including myalgias and rare cases like dermatomyositis.
  • A case of atorvastatin-induced dermatomyositis illustrates the importance of early screening for muscle weakness and rashes in patients starting statins.
  • This case supports the idea that statins can trigger immune-mediated diseases, highlighting the need for a team-based approach in managing such conditions.

Article Abstract

HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins) are one of the most widely used medications in the primary care setting, and like any medications they have many side effects. The common ones include myalgias and rare ones include dermatomyositis. Here we present the case of atorvastatin-induced dermatomyositis with an unfortunate progression. This mandates a low threshold for first contact doctors to screen their patients for new-onset muscle weakness and rash after starting a statin recently, like our patient who had started atorvastatin several months before. This case adds to the previously reported cases and provides further evidence for statins being triggers of immune-mediated disease. The appropriate management of this condition requires a collaborative effort involving clinical judgment, laboratory testing, and imaging.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7179976PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.7759/cureus.7387DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

case atorvastatin-induced
8
atorvastatin-induced dermatomyositis
8
weak knees
4
knees case
4
dermatomyositis hmg-coa
4
hmg-coa reductase
4
reductase inhibitors
4
inhibitors statins
4
statins medications
4
medications primary
4

Similar Publications

Statin-induced liver injury has been widely described. However, cases of clinically significant liver injury are rare. We present a 56-year-old woman who developed atorvastatin-induced grade III acute liver injury with concurrent rhabdomyolysis that worsened after rechallenging, which highlighted the need for pharmacovigilance with statins.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Atorvastatin-induced Myositis and Drug-induced Liver Injury.

J Assoc Physicians India

October 2023

Junior Resident, Department of Geriatric Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, India.

Statins are drugs for preventing cardiac events in the elderly population. Statins are well tolerated with a lower reported incidence of serious side effects (<0.15%) like myopathy and elevated transaminases [>3× upper limit of normal (ULN)].

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • Drug-induced autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) occurs when liver damage is linked to drugs, leading to symptoms like fatigue and jaundice, as well as immune responses such as autoantibody development.
  • This case study discusses a 57-year-old woman who developed atorvastatin-induced AIH after taking the medication for three months, leading to severe liver dysfunction.
  • After conducting imaging and serological tests, and confirming the diagnosis through a liver biopsy, her symptoms improved significantly with a treatment regimen that included prednisone.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Atorvastatin-induced Lupus Erythematosus Tumidus: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Acta Dermatovenerol Croat

December 2023

Katarina Trčko, MD, Department of Dermatology and Venereal Diseases, University Medical Centre Maribor, Maribor, Slovenia.; Received: June 21, 2023 Accepted: August 17, 2023.

Lupus erythematosus tumidus (LET) is a rare photosensitive skin disease classified as a separate subtype of cutaneous lupus erythematosus. Clinically, it is characterized by erythematous plaques on sun-exposed areas. Typical histopathological findings are perivascular and periadnexal lymphohistiocytic infiltrates and prominent mucin deposition in the dermis.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Statins can commonly cause myopathy. Most of the time, stopping the culprit drug should solve the problem. However, if the drug has been discontinued but muscle weakness continues to worsen, immune-mediated myopathy should be taken into consideration.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!