Red Yeast Rice for Dyslipidemia in Statin-Intolerant Patients
Authors: David G. Le Couteur
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2010)

Letters19 January 2010Red Yeast Rice for Dyslipidemia in Statin-Intolerant PatientsDavid G. Le Couteur, MDDavid G. Le Couteur, MDFrom University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia.Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-152-2-201001190-00024 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:Becker and colleagues (1) conclude that red yeast rice might be a treatment option in persons who cannot tolerate statins. The trial studied persons who had previously discontinued statins secondary to myalgia but excluded persons with the more-serious diagnosis of myositis or rhabdomyolysis.The authors indicate that the daily dose of red yeast rice is equivalent to only 6 mg of lovastatin and is much lower (and presumably safer) than the recommended daily dose of lovastatin tablets, which is 20 to 40 mg. The active component of lovastatin is its metabolite, lovastatin hydroxyacid. The only pharmacokinetic study ...References1. Becker DJ, Gordon RY, Halbert SC, French B, Morris PB, Rader DJ. Red yeast rice for dyslipidemia in statin-intolerant patients: a randomized trial. Ann Intern Med. 2009;150:830-9, W147-9. [PMID: 19528562] LinkGoogle Scholar2. Li Z, Seeram NP, Lee R, Thames G, Minutti C, Wang HJ, et al. Plasma clearance of lovastatin versus chinese red yeast rice in healthy volunteers. J Altern Complement Med. 2005;11:1031-8. [PMID: 16398595] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Mignini F, Tomassoni D, Streccioni V, Traini E, Amenta F. Pharmacokinetics and bioequivalence study of two tablet formulations of lovastatin in healthy volunteers. Clin Exp Hypertens. 2008;30:95-108. [PMID: 18293165] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Mueller PS. Symptomatic myopathy due to red yeast rice [Letter]. Ann Intern Med. 2006;145:474-5. [PMID: 16983142] LinkGoogle Scholar5. Lapi F, Gallo E, Bernasconi S, Vietri M, Menniti-Ippolito F, Raschetti R, et al. Myopathies associated with red yeast rice and liquorice: spontaneous reports from the Italian Surveillance System of Natural Health Products [Letter]. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2008;66:572-4. [PMID: 18637891] CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAuthors: David G. Le Couteur, MDAffiliations: From University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia.Disclosures: None disclosed. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoSymptomatic Myopathy due to Red Yeast Rice Paul S. Mueller Red Yeast Rice for Dyslipidemia in Statin-Intolerant Patients David J. Becker , Ram Y. Gordon , Steven C. Halbert , Benjamin French , Patti B. Morris , and Daniel J. Rader Red Yeast Rice for Dyslipidemia in Statin-Intolerant Patients Alfredo Vannacci , Francesco Lapi , Eugenia Gallo , Francesca Menniti-Ippolito , Alessandro Mugelli , and Fabio Firenzuoli Red Yeast Rice for Dyslipidemia in Statin-Intolerant Patients David J. Becker and Ram Y. Gordon Red Yeast Rice for Dyslipidemia in Statin-Intolerant Patients Anna L. Kolpakchi , Ikedieze I. Chukwu , and Maria T. Vlachaki Metrics 19 January 2010Volume 152, Issue 2Page: 134-135KeywordsAttentionDyslipidemiaGlycoproteinsMetabolitesMusclesMyalgiaMyositisPharmacokineticsRhabdomyolysisStatins ePublished: 19 January 2010 Issue Published: 19 January 2010 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2010 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...