Pravachol 20 mg

Pravachol (Pravastatin) is a cholesterol-lowering medication that blocks the production of cholesterol (a type of fat) in the body.
Pravachol (Pravastatin) reduces low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and total cholesterol in the blood. Lowering your cholesterol can help prevent heart disease and hardening of the arteries, conditions that can lead to heart attack, stroke, and vascular disease.
Pravachol is used to treat high cholesterol. Pravastatin is also used to lower the risk of stroke, heart attack, or other heart complications in people with coronary heart disease.

In rare cases, pravastatin can cause a condition that results in the breakdown of skeletal muscle tissue. This condition can lead to kidney failure. Call your doctor at once if you have unexplained muscle pain or tenderness, muscle weakness, fever or flu symptoms, and dark colored urine.
This medication can cause birth defects in an unborn baby. Do not use if you are pregnant. Use an effective form of birth control, and tell your doctor if you become pregnant during treatment.
Do not take pravastatin if you have liver disease, or if you are breast-feeding.
Before taking pravastatin, tell your doctor if you have diabetes, underactive thyroid, kidney disease, a muscle disorder, or if you drink 3 or more alcoholic beverages per day.
Avoid eating foods that are high in fat or cholesterol. Pravachol (Pravastatin) will not be as effective in lowering your cholesterol if you do not follow a cholesterol-lowering diet plan.
Avoid drinking alcohol while taking pravastatin. Alcohol can raise triglyceride levels, and may also damage your liver while you are taking pravastatin.
There may be other drugs that can interact with pravastatin. Tell your doctor about all the prescription and over-the-counter medications you use. This includes vitamins, minerals, herbal products, and drugs prescribed by other doctors. Do not start using a new medication without telling your doctor.

Dosage:
Take the missed dose as soon as you remember. If it is almost time for the next dose, skip the missed dose and take only the next regularly scheduled dose. Do not take extra medicine to make up the missed dose.

Overdose:
Seek emergency medical attention if you think you have used too much of this medicine.
An overdose of pravastatin is not expected to produce life-threatening symptoms.

Side effects:
Get emergency medical help if you have any of these signs of an allergic reaction: hives; difficulty breathing; swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat.
Stop using pravastatin and call your doctor at once if you have any of these serious side effects:
chest pain; muscle pain, tenderness, or weakness with fever or flu symptoms and dark colored urine; or nausea, stomach pain, low fever, loss of appetite, dark urine, clay-colored stools, jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes).

Less serious side effects include:

• mild stomach pain, constipation, diarrhea;
• heartburn, gas, bloating, upset stomach;
• tired feeling;
• headache, dizziness;
• stuffy nose, cold or flu symptoms;
• skin rash; or
• general pain.