Many Americans suffer from high cholesterol and related illnesses. Lipitor and related statin medications were initially hailed as miracle cholesterol drugs. However, evidence has begun to mount that these cholesterol medications are potentially dangerous for some patients.

What is Lipitor?

High cholesterol is a serious health risk. While the body needs a certain amount of cholesterol to survive, excessive levels of LDL or “bad” cholesterol can promote a number of serious health problems. First and foremost, high levels of LDL can promote atherosclerosis, a hardening of the arteries. Without the normal elasticity of the arteries, the heart is forced to work harder, and may enlarge dangerously. Additionally, bits of cholesterol, stuck to the sides of the arteries, can dislodge and block critical blood vessels. This can cause injuries like stroke, heart attacks, and other medical emergencies.

Lipitor and related drugs, called statins, are designed to help lower cholesterol levels. Cholesterol levels are influenced by both diet and a patient’s own physiology. Even if a patient is eating right and exercising, they can still have high cholesterol if their body is producing too much LDL cholesterol, along with all the risks that entails. Statins interfere with the body’s ability to produce cholesterol, particularly LDL cholesterol.

However, evidence has begun to mount that statins like Lipitor may carry health risks of their own.

New Statin Guidelines

A recent analysis looking what the new statin guidelines issued by the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology in November, saying that statins, like Lipitor, should be prescribed more broadly finds that it means that almost half of Americans from age 40 to 75 and almost all men over 60 should be on statins to prevent heart disease, which is about 56 million Americans total.

The analysis was published on March 19 in New England Journal of Medicine. The purpose of the analysis was to “quantify what the guidelines do, and not get into a discussion about whether they are correct,” said Michael Pencina, a biostatician at Duke University, who lead the analysis.

“That is striking . . . eye-opening,” said Dr. Daniel Rader, a cardiologist at the University of Pennsylvania about the estimate, adding that it “has the potential to do much more good than harm.”

Alleged Risks of Lipitor

However, there are serious risks — and various Lipitor lawsuits assert — that statins like Lipitor may cause serious problems for some patients.

Studies have found that statins increase the risk of developing type-2 diabetes, a metabolic disorder wherein the body looses the ability to control the amount of sugar in the blood. This can cause a host of life-threatening complications. The effect is most pronounced in postmenopausal women.

Lipitor Class Action Lawsuits on the Rise

Lipitor lawsuits have been filed by patients who developed type-2 diabetes after using Lipitor. TheseLipitor class action lawsuit allegations claim that drug manufacturers were aware of the risk of type-2 diabetes, and  promoted and made the drug anyway, endangering patients. The Lipitor lawsuits further allege that not only was Pfizer Inc. aware of the diabetes risk, but that actively downplayed these risks.

The litigation against the Pfizer has taken the form of a multidistrict litigation or MDL. MDLs are a type of group lawsuit similar to a Lipitor class action lawsuit. The main difference between them is that MDLs typically start as many individual lawsuits, which are later consolidated into a single preceding while class action lawsuits are generally filed as group lawsuits from the beginning.

The Lipitor MDL is formally titled In Re: Lipitor (Atorvastin Calcium) Marketing, Salespractices and Product Liability Litigation (No. II), MDL No. 2502, filed in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina.