What is Ezetimibe? Complete Info

Ezetimibe is cholesterol absorption inhibitor used for lowering down blood cholesterol levels in a patient’s body. It can be given alone or with other medicines as a part of a complete treatment plan, which also includes a low fat diet, weight loss and exercise regime. The drug works by decreasing the amount of cholesterol absorbed by the body from the diet consumed.

Keeping cholesterol levels under control also helps in preventing other health related problems, such as heart attack or stroke. In some cases, it can also be used to treat a rare inherited disease known as phytosterolemia or homozygous sitosterolemia, in which the patient has raised plant sterols levels in the blood which is similar to cholesterol.

How Ezetimibe works

This drug prevents absorption of cholesterol into the blood from small intestine, it prevents absorption of other plant sterols too into the blood from the diet, and it also prevents re-absorption of the cholesterol released from bile duct into intestine into the bloodstream. As a result of this, Ezetimine reduces the amount of cholesterol in a patient’s blood. When used along with a cholesterol lowering diet and a statin, it is given to people with familial hypercholesterolemia or inherited high cholesterol in their blood.

How to take Ezetimibe

This medication is taken orally once or twice in a day with or without meals. The dosage recommended to you depends on the severity of your medical condition and your individual response to the treatment. If you are also taking a bile acid sequestrant along with it, you will have to keep a gap of at least 2 hours between both the medicines. You may need to take Ezetimibe for a long time, but you may notice the results only after around 2 weeks of starting the treatment. Remember that Ezetimibe is given only as part of a complete treatment plan. During treatment, you will also need to consume a low fat diet, exercise regularly, and lose weight.