Simvastatin - (Vytorin®, Zocor®)

This drug is commonly used to lower cholesterol and to prevent heart attack, stroke, and other cardiac problems. Simvastatin belongs to the group of drugs called statins. Among statins, simvastatin has the highest risk for muscle-related side effects if taken at high doses.

Your Results

Moderate risk of side effects

Based on your genetic markers, you are likely to have a moderate risk of side effects. These include muscle pain or weakness (myopathy) and muscle breakdown (rhabdomyolysis) which can lead to kidney failure and, occasionally, death.

Drug and side effects facts

Generic names: simvastatin (SIM-va-stah-tin)

Brand names: Lipex®, Simvacor®, Simlup®, Simcard®, Vytorin®, Zocor®

Primary uses: Simvastatin is widely prescribed to lower cholesterol and to prevent heart attack, stroke, and other cardiac problems. Statins, the group of drugs to which simvastatin belongs, are also known as “HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors.”

Side effects: Based on their genetic makeup, some people are at increased risk for muscle damage (myopathy) after taking this drug.

Learn more about how this drug affects you

What you can do

This information is likely to be important for your health.

Let your doctor(s) know about this genetic result.
Carry this information with you should it be needed in a medical consultation or emergency.
Consider sharing this information with your family.

If you need drugs to treat high cholesterol or prevent heart disease, your medical team may want to consider options to maximize simvastatin benefits while minimizing side effects, such as prescribing a different drug or lowering your dose. If you are already taking simvastatin, don’t decide to stop or make changes to your medication on your own. Instead, talk to your doctor right away.

Learn more about what you can do

How common are these side effects?

Statin-related muscle damage (myopathy) occurs in about 1 case per 10,000 patients per year taking standard doses of statins. (This estimate reflects past occurrences of this side effect in the general population, not your personal genetic risk, and includes people of all ancestries.)

The rate of this side effect increases with higher doses and if certain other drugs are taken at the same time, such as fibrates, another type of cholesterol-controlling medication (For more information, see the “Consider other risk factors” section on your What you can do page).

Genetics is only part of the story. Your age, the amount of this drug you take, and other health conditions such as diabetes also contribute to your risk of simvastatin side effects.

Learn more about side effects