Compare simvastatin vs. Livalo
Head-to-head comparisons of medication uses, side effects, ratings, and more.
Lowers cholesterol.
Zocor (simvastatin) is a good medication to improve your cholesterol.
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3.8/ 5 average rating with 1176 reviewsforsimvastatin
Lowers cholesterol.
Livalo (pitavastatin) lowers your cholesterol and prevents heart disease, but may be more expensive than other medicines that work just like it.
Upsides
- Can lower the risk of heart attack, stroke, and death, particularly if you have diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, or a history of smoking.
- Lowers "bad" cholesterol (LDL) and triglycerides (fats) and raises "good" cholesterol (HDL) in people who have trouble doing this through diet and exercise.
- Available in generic.
- Available in combination pills with other cholesterol medicines.
- Good add-on therapy for reducing cholesterol if diet and exercise aren't enough.
- Lowers your risk for heart attack, stroke, and death.
- Livalo (pitavastatin) has fewer drug interactions with HIV medications compared to other cholesterol-lowering treatment options.
Downsides
- You are at higher risk for side effects if you are female, are 65 years or older, drink alcohol every day, or have liver disease, kidney disease, or diabetes.
- Not safe to use if you're pregnant.
- Can have more drug interactions than some other drugs in the same class (statins).
- Expensive if not covered by insurance.
- Cholesterol-lowering effect may not be enough if you have very high cholesterol.
- Many cannot tolerate this medicine and ones similar to it, because of severe pains and muscle aches.
Used for
- High cholesterol
- High triglycerides
- Heart attack and stroke prevention
- High cholesterol and fats in the blood
Dosage forms
- Pill
- Pill
Price
Lowest price
$243.13
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$309.70
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Reviews
1176 reviews so far
61%
saidit'sworth it
48%
saiditworked well
14%
saidit'sa big hassle
Have you used Zocor (simvastatin)?
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Side effects
14possible side effects
- Bronchitis7%
- Abdominal pain6%
- Atrial fibrillation6%
- Stomach problems5%
- Balance problems5%
- Eczema5%
- Diabetes4%
- Muscle pain4%
- Insomnia4%
- Edema/swelling3%
- Headache3%
- Infection, urinary tract3%
- Constipation2%
- Sinus infection2%
The Livalo (pitavastatin) FDA package insert doesn’t have numbers about how common side effects are.
Risks and risk factors
- Muscle pain and kidney damage
- Kidney disease
- High dose of Zocor (simvastatin)
- Combining Zocor (simvastatin) with other cholesterol-lowering drugs
- Older age
- Female gender
- Liver damage
- Heavy alcohol use
- History of chronic liver disease
- Harm to unborn baby
- Pregnancy
- Breast feeding
- Drug interactions
- Certain drugs can increase the dose of Zocor (simvastatin) in the body
- High blood sugar
- History of high blood sugar
- High blood sugars
- Liver damage
- Heavy alcohol use
- Prior history of chronic liver disease
- Muscle pain
- High doses of Livalo (pitavastatin)
- Elderly
- Birth defects