Crestor Uses

The main uses of Crestor are to lower cholesterol in patients with high cholesterol and to lower triglycerides in patients with high triglycerides. Through these effects, the proper use of Crestor can help reduce a person's risk of heart disease or a heart attack. To date, none of these Crestor uses have been approved for treating children.

 

Crestor Uses: An Overview

Crestor® (the generic name is rosuvastatin calcium) is a medication that has been licensed to treat several conditions. Crestor can be used:
 

Effects of Crestor

Crestor is part of a class of drugs called statins.
 It works by blocking a particular enzyme, (HMG-CoA reductase) that controls the rate of cholesterol production in the body. This causes the liver to make less cholesterol. It also increases the liver's ability to collect and get rid of LDL cholesterol.
 
Through these effects, Crestor helps reduce the following forms of cholesterol and fats:
 
  • Total cholesterol
  • LDL cholesterol
  • Apo B (a component of cholesterol that is linked to several heart disease risk factors)
  • VLDL cholesterol (very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol)
  • Triglycerides.
     
For people taking Crestor, HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) generally increases.
 
The main goal of any high cholesterol treatment is to lower your LDL cholesterol enough to reduce your risk for developing problems related to high cholesterol (see Effects of High Cholesterol). The higher your risk, the lower your LDL goal will be.
 
(Click High Cholesterol Risk to determine your cholesterol risk and find out what your LDL cholesterol level should be.)
 
Any cholesterol treatment begins with lifestyle changes (weight loss, diet, and exercise). If lifestyle changes do not lower your cholesterol to a desirable level, cholesterol medication, such as Crestor, may be necessary.
 
(Crestor Uses Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;