The problem is that simvastatin is not as potent a drug as either atorvastatin or Crestor.
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Will it mean that Vytorin use will reduce heart attacks and strokes better than atorvastatin?
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Furthermore, one has to wonder if the shifting of patients from atorvastatin to simvastatin proved harmful.
FORBES: Do We Really Need Head-To-Head Comparison Trials With Statins To Improve Cardiac Health?
Some pharmacies should have atorvastatin available on Wednesday, though they may not have their full supplies.
Therefore, more doctors are opting to move patients from simvastatin to atorvastatin than to switch to Zetia.
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The problem is, simvastatin is known to be a weaker statin than atorvastatin or rosuvastatin (generic Crestor).
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The products that will have these label changes include Lipitor (atorvastatin), Mevacor (lovastatin), Crestor (rosuvastatin) and Zocor (simvastatin).
So there is no proof that Liptruzet prevents heart attacks, strokes, or other cardiovascular complications better than atorvastatin alone.
FORBES: Merck's Cholesterol Pill Win Is Already Drawing Fire
The only difference was the dose of atorvastatin and the resulting greater lowering of LDL at the high dose.
FORBES: Do We Really Need Head-To-Head Comparison Trials With Statins To Improve Cardiac Health?
The generic version will be labeled atorvastatin calcium, the chemical name of Lipitor.
Most patients should expect to eventually switch to atorvastatin, if not right away.
Pfizer will no longer aggressively market Lipitor (atorvastatin), its former crown jewel and the most lucrative pharmaceutical product ever.
FORBES: Atorvastatin Lifts Ranbaxy While Pfizer Abandons Its Lipitor Marketing Efforts
This was the first full quarter in which the company sold generic atorvastatin.
FORBES: Atorvastatin Lifts Ranbaxy While Pfizer Abandons Its Lipitor Marketing Efforts
Without those data, it is unlikely for physicians to use the more expensive Vytorin instead of the cheaper, generic atorvastatin.
FORBES: Cholesterol Drug Heart Study Continues, But Will Merck's Vytorin Really IMPROVE-IT?
Insurance copayments should drop considerably, if patients are getting Lipitor or atorvastatin on the generic tier of their health plans.
We have also seen some differences in benefit, with the more potent statins like atorvastatin reducing risk more than less potent statins.
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The generic version of Lipitor (atorvastatin), is on the market as will be the generic form of Crestor in a few years.
In March, for the first time, Ranbaxy had a greater share of the atorvastatin market than Pfizer, according to Fierce Pharma.
FORBES: Atorvastatin Lifts Ranbaxy While Pfizer Abandons Its Lipitor Marketing Efforts
Depending on the doses used, in a head-to-head study Vytorin lowered LDL by 47-59%, whereas the values for atorvastatin (generic Lipitor) were 36-53%.
FORBES: Cholesterol Drug Heart Study Continues, But Will Merck's Vytorin Really IMPROVE-IT?
For example, atorvastatin and simvastatin are both equally effective, as far as we currently know, and simvastatin came off patent six years ago.
FORBES: Do We Really Need Head-To-Head Comparison Trials With Statins To Improve Cardiac Health?
Clinical studies have shown, and it is accepted by CV experts around the world, that atorvastatin lowers LDL to a significantly greater extent than simvastatin.
FORBES: Do We Really Need Head-To-Head Comparison Trials With Statins To Improve Cardiac Health?
Liptruzet will be appealing with atorvastatin is still not potent enough.
FORBES: Merck's Cholesterol Pill Win Is Already Drawing Fire
Pfizer mounted an aggressive campaign to retain as much of the atorvastatin market as possible in the early days after the loss of market exclusivity.
FORBES: Atorvastatin Lifts Ranbaxy While Pfizer Abandons Its Lipitor Marketing Efforts
Another statin, atorvastatin (Trade name: Lipitor, Pfizer) became the biggest selling drug of all time and simvastatin also became an all time best seller.
FORBES: Do We Really Need Head-To-Head Comparison Trials With Statins To Improve Cardiac Health?
Eric Palmer at FiercePharma reported on Monday that the glass-containing atorvastatin tablets came from one of the most closely watched of these Ranbaxy India facilities.
Time will tell if Mylan Laboratories and Watson Pharmaceuticals are able to fill the need for atorvastatin with their own generic versions of the drug.
At the same time, generic drug manufacturer Ranbaxy posted record revenue for the last business quarter, growth fueled largely by sales of generic atorvastatin in the United States.
FORBES: Atorvastatin Lifts Ranbaxy While Pfizer Abandons Its Lipitor Marketing Efforts
As I pointed out in the Times op-ed, the diabetes issue only surfaced in recent trials with higher doses (40 mg of Simvastatin) and atorvastatin (Lipitor) and rosuvastatin (Crestor).
If past experiences with the advent of generics is any guide, it will probably take some time for pharmacy shelves to fill with atorvastatin and for most patients to get on the generic.
Drugstore officials say that because of the variation in plans, a pharmacist won't be able to tell patients whether they're getting Lipitor or atorvastatin (uh-tour'-vuh-statin) until they fill their prescriptions at the counter.
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