Q: A 56 years old diabetic man has undergone angioplasty 6 months back. He has been advised Meztok, Rantac and Glycoment GP, Ecospirin 150 and Clopigrel 75 each twice a day and Aztor 10 mg once a day. Is there any substitute medicine for Metzok, which is prescribed for heart patients? Is it advisable to reduce the intake of the medicine? What are the side effects of Aztor (10 mg)? Please advise.

A:Metzok (not Meztok) is the brand name; the name of the medicine is metoprolol. There are many brand substitutes such as Betaloc, Metolar etc. Metoprolol is generally taken twice a day but controlled release, long-acting formulation can be taken once a day. The drug should be avoided unless it is absolutely essential since its long-term use can precipitate diabetes or make existing diabetes worse. Aztor is the brand name; the name of the medicine is atorvastatin. Its side effects include headache, muscle pain, joint/bone pain (arthralgia), asthenia, insomnia, rash. , Fluflu-like syndrome, sinusitussinusitis. , Elevated elevated liver tests levels. P, peripheral nerve disorders. T, tendon rupture (serious). L, loss or impaired memory. M, myopathy, or rhabdomyolysis (very serious muscle disorder) with renal dysfunction. There is no significant difference between 80 mg and 150 mg of aspirin (Ecosprin); hence the dose of 75-80 mg is adequate (to make the blood thinner) since it will cause less side effects on the stomach and may obviate the need to take ranitidine (Rantac) which is given to reduce aspirin-related acidity.