Ezetimibe

2 medicines

Ezetimibe blocks cholesterol absorption in the gut to lower LDL cholesterol, usually alongside a statin. Combined with a statin it raises the risk of muscle damage, so report unexplained muscle pain right away.

Roszet

Rosuvastatin, Ezetimibe

10/10mg

Roszet is a cholesterol medication containing Rosuvastatin + Ezetimibe, available as 10/10mg tablets.

from $1.14 / tablet View

Zetia

Ezetimibe

10mg

Zetia is a cholesterol medication containing Ezetimibe, available as 10mg tablets.

from $1.13 / tablet View

Key facts

  • Ezetimibe lowers LDL ("bad") cholesterol by blocking its absorption in the small intestine. It's often combined with a statin for a stronger effect, or used alone if statins aren't tolerated.
  • You take one tablet a day, with or without food. It can take a few weeks to see the full drop in cholesterol.
  • Combined with a statin, ezetimibe raises the risk of muscle breakdown (rhabdomyolysis). Report any unexplained muscle pain, tenderness or weakness to your prescriber right away.
  • Seek urgent care for dark urine with muscle pain, or yellowing of the skin or eyes.

What ezetimibe treats

Ezetimibe treats high cholesterol, either alone in people who cannot tolerate a statin or added to a statin when diet and a statin alone haven't lowered LDL enough. It's also used for a few inherited high-cholesterol conditions, including homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia and sitosterolemia, a rare disorder where the gut absorbs too much plant sterol. It does not treat high triglycerides on its own.

How ezetimibe works

Cholesterol reaches your bloodstream from two sources: what your liver makes and what your gut absorbs from food and bile. Ezetimibe blocks a transporter protein in the small intestine wall that normally carries cholesterol into the body, so more of it passes through and leaves in stool. With less cholesterol arriving from the gut, the liver pulls more LDL out of the blood to make up the difference, and LDL levels fall.

Before you take it

  • Avoid ezetimibe if you have active liver disease, or if you take it with a statin and have unexplained high liver enzymes.
  • Tell your prescriber about any statin you take, cyclosporine, or blood thinners like warfarin, since these can raise ezetimibe levels or its effects.
  • Liver function tests are usually checked before starting and while combined with a statin.
  • Pregnancy and breastfeeding: avoid ezetimibe with a statin; ezetimibe alone should only be used if your doctor decides it's necessary.

Side effects

Common effects are usually mild: diarrhea, stomach pain, tiredness, and joint aches.

Stop and seek urgent medical care for any of these:

  • Unexplained muscle pain, tenderness or weakness, especially with fever or dark urine.
  • Yellowing of the skin or eyes, dark urine, or persistent nausea (signs of liver injury).
  • Swelling of the face, lips or throat, or difficulty breathing.

Safety essentials

  • The muscle-damage risk is highest when ezetimibe is combined with a statin. Never increase your statin dose without medical advice, and report muscle symptoms immediately.
  • If you take a statin alongside ezetimibe, your liver enzymes and cholesterol are usually checked periodically.
  • Take ezetimibe at the same time each day. Space it several hours apart from a bile-acid binder such as cholestyramine, since those drugs block its absorption.

This page is educational and does not replace advice from a doctor or pharmacist who knows your health history.