LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

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LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

Postby Emily1 » Sun May 01, 2022 3:55 pm

I was dx with 50-70% blocked right carotid artery and switched from vegetarian diet to plant based last year. Recent cholesterol 163/hdl 55/ldl 92/triglycerides 71. Dr said I must go on statins to bring ldl under 70. I am so depressed about this, otherwise am fit and healthy 83yo. Have read many bad things about statins :(
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Re: LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

Postby pundit999 » Tue May 03, 2022 1:53 pm

Emily1 wrote:I was dx with 50-70% blocked right carotid artery and switched from vegetarian diet to plant based last year. Recent cholesterol 163/hdl 55/ldl 92/triglycerides 71. Dr said I must go on statins to bring ldl under 70. I am so depressed about this, otherwise am fit and healthy 83yo. Have read many bad things about statins :(

Strange that they are recommending statins for a health 83 yr old with such great cholesterol numbers.
Please send a private message to dr McDougall or contact dr essylstyn . They may provide more accurate advice but since it has been not long since you started eating this way, may be wait a bit?

Since your cholesterol is already so low , even a very small dose such as 5mg Lipitor should suffice for you but get experts to weigh in.
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Re: LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

Postby pundit999 » Tue May 03, 2022 1:57 pm

https://drmcdougallforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=62178&sid=ece1dbba415563f6319134e68c8d4bd4

Coincidence that I just posted this great story in the lounge.
Talks about reversing carotid blockage through diet similar to ours.
May be get more details about how this man accomplished it?
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Re: LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

Postby pundit999 » Tue May 03, 2022 2:02 pm

Strange that a quick search results in a case very similar to yours. Of course they don’t talk about the benefits of a whole plants only diet:
QUESTION:
Is there any evidence that statins help regarding carotid occlusive disease?

I am a 81 year old male, very mild infarction 26 years ago, high blood pressure but well controlled by meds (140/70), total cholesterol 108 (never over 130), LDL 58, 50% blockage in right carotid, left [carotid] unreadable by ultrasound. My cardiologist wants me to go on a statin. Is there any evidence at all that a statin would help someone like me? (I have arthritis and am worried about the fairly common muscle pain side effect with statins. I have plenty of muscle pain already!)

Submitted by Allen from United States on 04/04/2016
ANSWER:
by Stephen Michaud, PharmD, BCPS
In patients with asymptomatic carotid occlusive disease, the estimated risk of ipsilateral (one side) stroke is approximately 0.5-1% a year. There is evidence to suggest that the best method to manage carotid artery stenosis is a combination of therapy that includes lipid lowering therapy (statin), antiplatelet medication (aspirin usually), and treatment of high blood pressure and diabetes along with smoking cessation, weight control, limited alcohol intake, and regular aerobic physical activity. Statins have been shown in several clinical studies to lower the rate of carotid plaque progression and significantly reduce the rate of ischemic stroke. This data may or may not pertain exactly to your case, and consultation with your physician is recommended.

Statin related muscle pain remains the most common side effect of this drug class. Some statins have higher overall risk of muscle pain than others. The statin related muscle pain may also be dose dependent. Additionally, there are also many contributing factors to muscle pain such as age, vitamin D deficiency and hypothyroidism. If muscle pain develops while on a statin therapy, the medication can be stopped until the symptoms resolve. The original statin can be restarted at the same or lower dose, or a different statin therapy can be used with a lower dose to re-challenge and find out if muscle pain recurs. Unfortunately it is not possible to know prior to taking the statin whether or not you will have statin related muscle pain. In addition, patients may react differently to two different statins. You are encouraged to discuss this with your physician.
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Re: LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

Postby KillSwitch » Wed May 04, 2022 10:18 am

pundit999 wrote:
Emily1 wrote:Please send a private message to dr McDougall or contact dr essylstyn .

Since your cholesterol is already so low , even a very small dose such as 5mg Lipitor should suffice for you but get experts to weigh in.



If you PM someone via the forum software, you may never get a response back because email PM notifications do not work anymore.
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Re: LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

Postby KillSwitch » Wed May 04, 2022 10:28 am

Emily1 wrote:I was dx with 50-70% blocked right carotid artery and switched from vegetarian diet to plant based last year. Recent cholesterol 163/hdl 55/ldl 92/triglycerides 71. Dr said I must go on statins to bring ldl under 70. I am so depressed about this, otherwise am fit and healthy 83yo. Have read many bad things about statins :(


Sorry to hear Emily. Your cholesterol numbers look pretty good. You said the right carotid is partially blocked. What sxs were you having from this blocked vessel that made you seek medical treatment when this was discovered?
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Re: LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

Postby Emily1 » Wed May 04, 2022 7:04 pm

thnx so much for responses. I see my cardiologist due to atrial fibrillation episodes so he wanted to do the ultrasound of the carotid arteries. If not for the results I would not have realized I had blockage :( I have never eaten junk food etc but I was eating alot of nuts/oils etc.
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Re: LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

Postby curcubit » Fri May 13, 2022 8:32 am

Hi Emily,

have you ever had your lipoprotein (a) measured? It is an independent risk factor for CVD and genetically determined. It effects 10-20% of people. Most doctors do not know about this...and dont order lab test, as no approved treatment yet. Also, a standard lipid panel like the one you quote is not an adequate measure of what your cholesterol is doing in the body. you really need to understand ApoB or LDL particle number.

A LDL of 93 is not a great number for someone with proven ASCVD such as yourself. It should be 70 or below. Going on a low dose statin like Crestor and taking CoQ10 is not a failure. There is alot of misinformation about statins out there. Keep eating the McDougall way and following the cardiologist advice. And talk to someone (therapist) about your feelings about getting a diagnosis of blocked arteries. Feeling let down by your body/genetics, (or whatever it is you feel) etc can be difficult to process. Do the work to let go of those feelings. This can also help in reversing blockage. Our emotions definitely impact our health.

I have genetically elevated Lp (a) and ASCVD, and I am only 60. I try to accentuate the positive and show gratitude for the amazing body I do have, that has taken me reliably this far in life. I try to return that gift by taking the best care of my health: WFPB, exercise, meditation, etc. Good luck!
"One cannot pick a flower without troubling a star." Aldo Leopold
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Re: LDL and partially blocked carotid arteries

Postby Emily1 » Tue May 17, 2022 6:45 pm

thnx for responses, so appreciated :) Will ask re liprotein test. Decided to go ahead and take the rosuvastatin 10mgs and see how I do. Also adding more CoQ10/ribose/l-carnitine which according to Dr Stephen Sinatra can help prevent side effects.
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