Friday April 23, 2010


Question: 52 year old male post-MI is started on cholesterol lowering drug Zetia (Ezetimibe). Patient developed severe diarrhea. How its related to drug's mechanism of action?


Answer: Ezetimibe localises at the brush border of the small intestine, where it inhibits the absorption of cholesterol from the intestine.

Specifically, it appears to bind to a critical mediator of cholesterol absorption, the Niemann-Pick C1-Like 1 (NPC1L1) protein on the gastrointestinal tract epithelial cells. Diarrhea happens in 4.1% of patients.