Hair Loss with Simvastatin & Toprol XL

• By LidiaS
• Posted November 17, 2009 at 8:51 am
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Hi Kermit, and welcome to Womenheart!
I'm adding a link for you, this subject has been raised here before, you may find some info on this thread.

http://www.inspire.com/groups/womenheart/discussion/hair-thinning/

Lidia xx

• By chill
• Posted November 17, 2009 at 2:13 pm
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I will be so excited to hear what you find out...I am on both of the meds that your are but on 75mg Toprol XL and an ace inhibitor along with everything else. My hair comes out constrantly and is so thin, dry and brittle regardless of what I use. It has to be the meds...but know they will not let me go off of them. If you get any great advice, let me know. Thanks so much.

Cindy

• By Margee
• Posted November 17, 2009 at 7:15 pm
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Heart Sister

Include me in your findings on hair loss. I am on Zetia, Toprol, Plavix... and my hair is not the same. I lost a lot of it and also lost the shine. I am now trying a program through Regenix hair clinic at Cedar Sinai, hoping that will help. It's going to cost me some $$ but if I can stop the fall out, it will be worth it.

• By Winglover
• Posted November 17, 2009 at 8:26 pm
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When my son was first started on his cardiac cocktail of meds his hair fell out like crazy. He takes Coreg, Vasotec among others. Eventally it stopped.

• By laurahc
• Posted November 18, 2009 at 7:40 am
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Yes, please see the other discussions here on hair loss. It's more common as a side effect from statin drugs than it is from beta blockers, but even beta blockers can rarely cause hair loss, too.

There are at least two active discussion threads on the topic; the main one is here: http://www.inspire.com/groups/womenheart/discussion/hair-loss-14/ and there's also one here:
http://www.inspire.com/groups/womenheart/discussion/hair-thinning/

My doc just changed me from Zocor to Prevachol, which is a less powerful statin with a low profile of side effects, so hopefully my own hair, which is down past my waist, will stop falling out. I was on a beta blocker too, but we stopped that back in July.

best wishes,
Laura

• By playsmart
• Posted November 18, 2009 at 7:20 pm
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I have been on Coreg for 5 years -no hair loss. However, I was switched from Lipitor to Simvastatin, generic Zocor, a few months ago. My hair is falling out. I was told by my internist that in late 2010 there is going to be a warning about hair loss on the bottles of Zocor/simvastatin. The FDA is listing this as a major side effect of that drug. I had the doctor cut my dose down to 10mg. a few weeks ago. I would not mind going back on Lipitor, but my drug plan no longer will cover it.
I hope that you can get your meds adjusted so your hair will start to grow in again.Don't panic -your hear health is more important than your hair. Aks your doctors what they suggest. Playsmart

• By MotorcycleBobbi
• Posted November 18, 2009 at 8:13 pm
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Well I'm a hair dresser and I'm lossing my hair too. But from somthing different. They found out that I have a thyoid that doesn't work, So there is no iodine in me and I also have a gorder. But I'm not doing much right now about it. I ordered two wig's and they look like real. I haven't had thick hair my hole life so I picked two that have fine hair in them. I also use ( falls) that you put a little and I do mean little pony's in to anker them. I'm sorta glad that its getting colder here in Mich. so the hair piece's aren't hot. But they do such a good job with them these days. Not like the old days. Mine are air weaved and they also have a real-listic scalp at the fron't. I die my hair blonde and one of them my firends thought was my hair. I said of course it's mine hair I (Paided for it) ha ha Well my daughter just called she's on her way through minn. So she'll be here tomarrow aftenoon sometime. The weather says its going to be somewhat good weather this sat and sun so we'r going to go riding. Chat later

• By Linda_RS
• Posted November 21, 2009 at 8:06 am
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I too have experienced hair loss. I am also experiencing very brittle nails. I am on a statin and an ace-inhibitor. My thyroid was tested and said to be normal. I am learning to live with it, but don't like it.

Thanks for raising the issue.
Linda

• By barbwire
• Posted February 21, 2010 at 3:45 pm
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I am on Simvastatin and was experiencing the hair loss as well but the brittle, dry hair was worse. It was contributing to the hair loss by breaking off at the ends in large amounts. Product and hot oil treatments did nothing. I made a list of all the things that had changed at the time this started and one of them was that I had stopped taking fish oil pills when I started the Simvastatin. Being the easiest thing on my list to check out first I resumed taking 2000mg/day and in 5 days I saw a HUGE difference and after a week my hair is almost back to normal and the hair loss has been greatly reduced as well. Not medical...not proven....but worked for me and I just thought I would pass it along