Which side effects are reported most for atorvastatin?
Fatigue (14,402 reports), nausea and diarrhea are the reactions named most often in the roughly 250,000 reports to the FDA, as of June 2026, that list atorvastatin (Lipitor) among a patient's medicines. Muscle pain, a known statin side effect, has about 10,000, and type 2 diabetes about 11,000; statin labels note they can raise blood sugar. A report is not proof the medicine caused the problem: anyone can send one, it lists every medicine the person was taking, and the same case can be reported twice. Reports that the medicine didn't work or was used differently than labeled are left out. Don't stop a medicine without talking to a doctor.
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Source and date
- Data as of
- Published
The data
| Reported reaction | Reports to the FDA naming atorvastatin |
|---|---|
| Fatigue | 14,402 |
| Nausea | 12,932 |
| Diarrhea | 11,591 |
| Shortness of breath | 11,588 |
| Type 2 diabetes mellitus | 11,281 |
| Pain | 10,427 |
| Headache | 10,205 |
| Dizziness | 10,193 |
| Muscle pain | 10,033 |
| Weakness | 9,160 |
| Joint pain | 8,807 |
| Pain in an arm or leg | 8,384 |
| Falls | 8,155 |
| Death | 7,763 |
| Feeling unwell | 7,216 |