Call I just got from a Walgreens pharmacist - Page 14

emmysmom · ‎06-22-2010

@151949 wrote:
I just got a call from Walgreens. The pharmacist informed me that because I am on metformin I need to be on a statin drug.I told her No I don't - my total cholesterol is only 121. Heck , my cholesterol is what a person on statins hopes to achieve. She said it doesn't matter - any diabetic under 75 years old is supposed to be on statins no matter if they need it or not. I told her no I don't and that this conversation was over.
For a long time now I have found that I feel the standards of caring for diabetics is very questionable. They have lowered the FBS number to a very low number(95 unless they lowered it again this year) after decades of it being a standard that FBS of 110 is the normal and you medicate those with FBS of 140. Now the standard is to give statins - which can cause some people some pretty significant side effects -when they don't even have high cholesterol. ANYTHING TO MAKE A BUCK.

Wow! My doctor wanted me to take Statins...I'm also a diabetic...I said no...they have tried to get me to take them since I was in my 40's! I'm in my 60's now. She suggested Omega 3, and I take Cod liver oil now. She knows I am a holistic girl...and she's with me on that. When I was a caregiver...I saw many take Statins...including my mother...everyone of them developed muscle problems...they would quit, feel better..and their doctor would try another one!!!!! My Mom, (a nurse) refused insulin..so they put her on Advandia..a drug she NEVER should have taken! She'd had a previous stroke and heart problems...her doctor didn't do his homework...it was NOT for anyone with those risk factors...she ended up having a stroke, and died. I take Lantus, other then that...only supplements...!!!!! I guess they keep lowering the standard FBS, so they can get more patients on statins?? Metformin made me very sick...after quitting it..I didn't even notice a difference on my BS!

Don't cry for a man who's left you--the next one may fall for your smile.
-- Mae West

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

@Drythe wrote:
So your insurance company makes a decision that if you are taking X drug you should be told about Y drug, who is most likely to know who your insurance company is - your Pharmacist, or your Physician ?

In my case it is absolutely my Pharmacist.
Love my Physicians, still my Pharmacist is most likely to know this.

Some poster here made up the ****** about it being my ins co - it had nothing at all to do with my ins co. It was WALGREENS, and only Walgreens.

cater · ‎03-10-2010

Never ceases to amaze me the number of posters who find that every thing 151949 puts on here is something that they can find some thing to complain and nitpick her apart about.We don't live in her home and know what kind of phone calls she get. I get phone calls from some one who tells me that I suffer from back pain and leg pain and they are shipping some thing that my doctor and insurance company think I need. I hang up on them. But these posters who think it is their job to rip apart every thing that 151949 says and run her down should just ignore her. After all they do it so much that as soon as her nic comes in to view they are there to make snide comments. For me I have learned so much from her posting and have confirmed with my doctor on some of her comments and found them to be creditable So for me if I had a problem with a certain poster I would just sit back and keep my fingers off the keys why keep stirring the so called pot till it boils over.

LTT1 · ‎03-09-2010

@151949 wrote:
I just got a call from Walgreens. The pharmacist informed me that because I am on metformin I need to be on a statin drug.I told her No I don't - my total cholesterol is only 121. Heck , my cholesterol is what a person on statins hopes to achieve. She said it doesn't matter - any diabetic under 75 years old is supposed to be on statins no matter if they need it or not. I told her no I don't and that this conversation was over.
For a long time now I have found that I feel the standards of caring for diabetics is very questionable. They have lowered the FBS number to a very low number(95 unless they lowered it again this year) after decades of it being a standard that FBS of 110 is the normal and you medicate those with FBS of 140. Now the standard is to give statins - which can cause some people some pretty significant side effects -when they don't even have high cholesterol. ANYTHING TO MAKE A BUCK.

@151949

I cannot believe (although I believe you) that now pharmacists are calling patients and recommending rx’s! That is just not acceptable! I’d tell on them or file a complaint.

I would also let them know that they are overstepping. WOW

~Have a Kind Heart, Fierce Mind, Brave Spirit~

NYC Susan · ‎03-13-2010

@LTT1 wrote:
@151949 wrote:
I just got a call from Walgreens. The pharmacist informed me that because I am on metformin I need to be on a statin drug.I told her No I don't - my total cholesterol is only 121. Heck , my cholesterol is what a person on statins hopes to achieve. She said it doesn't matter - any diabetic under 75 years old is supposed to be on statins no matter if they need it or not. I told her no I don't and that this conversation was over.
For a long time now I have found that I feel the standards of caring for diabetics is very questionable. They have lowered the FBS number to a very low number(95 unless they lowered it again this year) after decades of it being a standard that FBS of 110 is the normal and you medicate those with FBS of 140. Now the standard is to give statins - which can cause some people some pretty significant side effects -when they don't even have high cholesterol. ANYTHING TO MAKE A BUCK.
@151949

I cannot believe (although I believe you) that now pharmacists are calling patients and recommending rx’s! That is just not acceptable! I’d tell on them or file a complaint.
I would also let them know that they are overstepping. WOW

I feel it's over-stepping too, but I wouldn't make a big deal out of it or even think about filing a complaint. I would find it annoying, but nothing more.

I trust my doctor to discuss all of my medications with me in detail, and he does. So likely this would have been a discussion my doctor and I already had. If so, I would tell the pharmacist that my meds should be dispensed as prescribed. If this was news to me, I would tell the pharmacist that I would be contacting my doctor to ask about it. And then I would do so.

Good pharmacists are extremely knowledgeable, there's no doubt about that. When my son had fairly serious surgery, decreasing and eliminating some of his medications prior to surgery was tricky and since they were prescribed by several different physicians, my PCP advised having my pharmacist take a look at all the meds and work out a plan. Each of the physicians were very familiar with the drugs they had prescribed (in their specialty), but of course not as good as a pharmacist would be when it came to the big picture. So that's what we did, and it worked out well. So in some situations, IMO, a pharmacist should be the go-to guy. But otherwise I want it to be my doctor.

I have a lot of respect for pharmacists, and I have one who I trust very much. But the bottom line for me is that I want only my doctor to decide what to prescribe - what he feels is best for me, based on the years he has known me, his familiarity with my family history, my own medical history, reactions I've had in the past, my input re what I'm comfortable taking and what I'm not, etc.

Btw, I take a statin - a low dose just three times a week - and it works very well for me with no side effects whatsoever. Not everyone reacts the same to medications, and I'm just providing some balance because there's a lot of negativity about statins here. They are wrong for some people, but they also can be very right for others.

BirkiLady · ‎02-22-2015

@JaneMarple wrote:
My fellow posters...........................until the next saga.

Better yet, why do intelligent posters (me included) respond to such nonsense? The OP thrives on this cwap. Wonder how long any of us could ignore the next crazy complaint? (I know. I'm as guilty as the next one. We all try to help her inaccurate posts, but she's always right! When will we learn that?)

Guess we'll just have to let misinformation go and consider the source. (Although not sure I'm able to do so in good conscience.)

I'm in CO at my condo and hope to stay away from this thread. Will do some soul-searching while closer to the Big Guy, but have a feeling he is just SMH with frustration as well!

Money screams; wealth whispers.

VaBelle35 · ‎03-10-2010

I don't know if I would consider myself an intelligent poster, but I do have a habit of reading the OP and responding without really looking at who is posting the OP.

===================================
QVC Shopper - 1993

# IAMTEAMWEN

Trinity11 · ‎11-16-2014

@caw wrote:

I am a practicing pharmacist of 34 years. I have never posted before, but just wanted to share some information.

Having diabetes can lead to microvascular and macrovascular complications.

MICROvascular complications occur when the diabetes affects the small blood vessels . The microvascular complications affect organs such as your eye and kidneys. That's why diabetes can lead to blindness and kidney complicaions. If you control your diabetes and have an A1C at goal, you CAN mitigate THESE complications.

Diabetes causes MACROvascular complications --it affects the large blood vessels which is why people with diabetes are 2 to 4 times more like to suffer a stroke or heart attack. Lowering your blood sugar does NOT mitigate THESE effects. That is why we are aggressive in diabetics and treat their blood pressure, put them on statins and work to get them to stop smoking. These interventions DO decease the risk of stroke and heart attack.

When statins first came on the market, we knew the statins lowered cholesterol and, people who were put on statins had less strokes and heart attacks.( often referred to as having an event). So, we treated to lower cholesterol numbers thinking that was what making the difference. Problem is, diabetics with "good" numbers were having an event. So why.....

The cholesterol of a diabetic has a different make -up then a non diabetic. It is denser and more likely to accumulate in blood vessels. Diabetics also have a difference in their endothelium (lining of the blood vessel). Diabetics have an increase of inflammation in the body . We can actually measure this by a measuring C reactive protein. Statins work on all of these issues.

Yes, statin drugs reduce LDL or "bad" cholesterol BUT they also reduce inflammation. Moreover, if there are any plaques of cholesterol (clumps that attach to the lining of the vessel), statins can help reduce those. When the plaques rupture (break open) they form blood clots. If the blood clot breaks off and travels to the heart, you have a heart attack. If it travels to the brain, a stroke. Stains stabalize plaques and decrease the risk this will happen. Even people with good numbers can have plaques.

NO other drugs, not fish oil, not niacin, not fibrates (gemfibrozil or fenofibrate) have been shown to reduce the risk of an event. They can, and do lower your numbers, but do NOT reduce risk. We now treat with statins to lower risk. Statins are classified by how strong they are, or the intensity. There are several factors to consider, but a diabetic should be on atleast a moderate potency (there are high potency) statin to reduce the risk of an event.

I hear people speculate that doctor's, pharmacists and insurance companies push these drugs based on studies done by big pharma. Big pharma does make two fish oil products, Lovaza and Vascepa and a Niacin product called Niaspan. You don't see commercials for these, because there is not 1 Study that shows that they reduce cardiovascular events. Fish oil and fibrates can decrease trigycerides which if high, can lead to pancreatitis. Fish oil has some blood thiing properties and has some anti-inflammatory effects, but still no data to show it reduces stroke or heart attack. Based on the OTC product you purchase it would take 12 to 16 caps a day to see the trigyceride lowering effect.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. The decision to take any medication does, of course, always rest with the individual.

I think it is awesome that your pharmacist cared enough to reach out.

Stain use in patients with diabetes is supported by several Clinical guidelines, The American Diabetes Association, The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists, and the American Heart Association.

The change from treating to see a good number to treating to risk is relatively new, from 2013 and it is a lot to wrap your head around since it really is not intuitive.

I hope at the very least, that this will get people talking with their physicians.

I wish you continued good health!

Thank you for this informative post @caw. After nearly 50 years of Type 1 diabetes, no one ever explained to me before why diabetics have different issues with cholesterol. A heart attack in 2016 with another in 2017, I had "normal" cholesterol levels. I was advised to take a statin but like @151949, I refused because I had no idea even patients with normal cholesterol are still at higher risk if they are diabetic.

Zhills · ‎11-15-2011

@MarieIG wrote:
Actually I thought this thread did contain a fair amount of discussion regarding relevant medical issues. DH is a diabetic and his physician wanted to put him a statins a while back, but it did not work out for him. My dad lasted for 10 days on statins before his PC pulled him off due to his bloodwork. In my opinion, such prescriptions should be given with careful consideration of the particular patient, risks and benefits, and side effects - and monitored on an ongoing basis.

If you want medical information, to to WebMD, Mayo Clinic or Cleveland Clinic......Don't take it off this BB!

A lot of what is posted is opinion not fact!