Can using Lipitor cause amnesia?

Q: I have normal LDL cholesterol but low HDL. With diet and exercise, I can get my HDL to the mid-30s, which is not great. Lipitor lowered my LDL below 80, but sadly my HDL didn't budge.

After being on Lipitor for a couple of months, I woke up one morning and had no idea what day of the week it was. At work, I could not transfer dollar amounts from hard copy to electronic spreadsheet (I would forget the amounts).

At a meeting, I could not remember names, and later at home, I kept asking my wife the same question, as I could not remember her answer. She took me to a doctor, who thought I had a mini-stroke. (All the tests were normal, so no stroke).

I mentioned Lipitor, but the doctor dismissed it. I was diagnosed with transient global amnesia.

I stopped taking Lipitor and I now take Niaspan (prescription niacin), and my HDL has improved to 43. My LDL is 80, and my memory is better than ever. I hope this story helps others.

A: We received a similar story from Duane Graveline, M.D., a retired astronaut and family physician, in 2001. He, too, was taking Lipitor when he had a scary experience with transient global amnesia (TGA).

Subsequently, we heard from others who also experienced TGA or other kinds of memory problems while taking statin-type cholesterol-lowering drugs.

We interviewed Dr. Graveline and several other experts about this complication and about ways to control cholesterol. To order a CD of this one-hour conversation on "The Dark Side of Statins," send $16 to: People's Pharmacy (CD-523), P.O. Box 52027, Durham, NC 27717-2027. It also is available at www.peoplespharmacy.com.

Q: My teenage daughter has been taking antibiotics to treat her acne for years, but she's also had terrible GI problems (stomach aches and diarrhea) for much of that time. I wonder if the antibiotics might be responsible.

She has taken Prilosec but it really hasn't helped. Is there anything else that might help her overcome these symptoms?

A: It is possible that years of antibiotic treatment have altered the ecology of her digestive tract, contributing to her pain and diarrhea. Antibiotics kill good bacteria as well as the bad ones.

Repopulating the digestive tract with good bacteria can sometimes help. Such probiotic bacteria may be found in yogurt with active live cultures or capsules such as Culturelle, Enzymatic Therapy or Florastor.

In their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Write to them c/o King Features Syndicate, 888 Seventh Ave., New York, NY 10019, or via their Web site: www.peoplespharmacy.org