Risks and All, Cholesterol Drug Gets Wider Market Approval

Just as the British medical journal The Lancet reported last month that statins such as Crestor had been linked to a 9 percent increased risk of diabetes, the FDA approved the use of the cholesterol medication as a preventive measure for millions of people who do not have
cholesterol problems. The New York Times reports that many medical experts think the wider approval was a very bad idea. Even before the diabetes link was revealed, the Times reports, Crestor patients had complained of muscle aches, and
doctors routinely check the liver
enzymes of people on the drug. According to the Times, doctors have generally seen
those risks as being more than offset by the drugs’ benefits for people
with high levels of “bad” cholesterol and a significant risk of
cardiovascular disease. But what about those patients who have no risks to offset?

Read more in the New York Times.