Lipitor Vs Zocor

When it comes to cholesterol-reducing pharmaceutical drugs, two of the big options on the market these days are Lipitor (on the one hand) and Zocor (on the other). Both drugs belong to the category of "statin" drugs. That said, Lipitor is an anstatin and Zocor a simvastatin, but both claim similar effects, which leads to the question, "So what are the differences between the two–-if any?"

Statin drugs work to reduce levels of harmful low-density lipid, or LDL, cholesterol in the human body. Zocor, a simvastatin marketed by the Merck Company, has demonstrated an ability to decrease these levels by up to 50%, while leaving the more benign high-density lipids relatively untouched. Recent research has even shown that Zocor can be useful in decreasing the progress of atherosclerosis.

All of these benefits have made Zocor pretty popular, but it's recent rise in sales can't begin to touch the pharmaceutical heavyweight Lipitor. In 2004, Lipitor made sales of over $10.4 billion, making it the highest-selling drug in the world. It has also displayed a huge effectiveness in decreasing LDL levels, as well as a variety of both harmless and somewhat-more-troubling side effects. However, most users have found Lipitor to be a good way to keep their cholesterol within reasonable and much more healthy levels.

Users generally report similar responses to both Lipitor and Zocor prescriptions. Lipitor is generally more potent milligram for milligram, but both drugs boast similar side effects and benefits. Since they belong to the very same chemical family, their tangibly demonstrable differences are, for the most part, negligible.