Crestor (rosuvastatin) is a medication that treats high cholesterol. Unfortunately, it has been associated with a 27% increased risk of type-2 diabetes. Recent studies have found that the risk for post-menopausal women with a BMI under 30 may be 50% higher.
What is Crestor?
Crestor (rosuvastatin) is a medication that reduces the amount of cholesterol produced by the liver. For people with pre-existing heart disease, this helps prevent atherosclerosis (fatty plaque deposits that narrow arteries), heart attacks, and stroke.
What is the problem?
The problem with Crestor and other statins is that they have been associated with an increased risk of type-2 diabetes — especially in post-menopausal women (aged 50 and up). Unfortunately, many older women only recently learned that they were at an increased risk of diabetes from Crestor. Our lawyers are concerned that Astra Zeneca is not doing enough to provide this information to patients or their doctors.
FDA Safety Warning for Crestor Diabetes
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published the following Safety Update linking Crestor and type-2 diabetes in April 2012. They warned: “People being treated with statins may have an increased risk of raised blood sugar levels and the development of Type 2 diabetes.”
Astra Zeneca was also forced to add stronger warnings about Crestor and diabete. According to the Prescribing Information for Crestor:
“Increases in HbA1c and fasting serum glucose levels have been reported with HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors, including Crestor. Based on clinical trial data with Crestor, in some instances these increases may exceed the threshold for the diagnosis of diabetes mellitus.”
Studies of Crestor and Type-2 Diabetes
- Justification for the Use of Statins in Primary Prevention: an Intervention Trial Evaluating Rosuvastatin (JUPITER): This was one of the first studies of Crestor and type-2 diabetes, published in 2006. Researchers found a 27% increased rate of investigator-reported type-2 diabetes.
- JAMA Internal Medicine: This study involved over 150,000 post-menopausal women (aged 50-79 years old). Researchers found that women who took statins were 50% more likely to be diagnosed with type-2 diabetes than women who did not take statins. After nine years, 9.9% of women on statins were diagnosed with diabetes.
- Circulation: Researchers looked at data on over 250,000 people and linked statins to a 9% increased risk of diabetes.
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