[posted 03/5/2000]
Question: I am presently taking Lescol (fluvastatin 20mg) and made a personal choice to change to Cerivastatin sodium (Baycol)0.2mg for convenience of availability. Please provide a comparison of these two drugs and any potential problems I may incur in making this switch. My family practice doctor did not have any experience with the fluvastatin and could not provide an answer. Thank you

Answer: There isn't a big difference in any of the drugs available in the class except for potency. That is, the milligrams needed to lower your cholesterol to acceptable levels varies, but the side effects do not seem to. There are occasional patients who experience some different effect but in general the toxicities and potential problems are identical. Lescol and Baycol are similar in potency, Baycol is a little higher-not much. Judge by the effect on lowering your cholesterol. I use them pretty much interchangeably.

Back to Drug InfoNet Home Page.