Two medicines, side by side
Fluvastatin vs pravastatin
Fluvastatin and pravastatin are both labeled for high cholesterol. Drugs@FDA records approvals of fluvastatin since 1993 and of pravastatin since 1991. Pharmacies paid $2.88 per fluvastatin ER 80 mg tablet and $0.058 per pravastatin sodium 20 mg tablet (NADAC, October 7, 2026); the strengths differ, so the two prices are not like for like. How each works, in its label's words: Fluvastatin, “Fluvastatin sodium is a competitive inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, the rate limiting enzyme that converts 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) to mevalonate, a precursor of sterols …”; Pravastatin, “Pravastatin is a reversible inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, the rate-limiting enzyme that converts HMG-CoA to mevalonate, a precursor of cholesterol.”
Check it at the source: the fluvastatin FDA label on DailyMed (effective April 21, 2025); the pravastatin FDA label on DailyMed (effective July 31, 2026).
Highlights of the fluvastatin record
Fluvastatin (Lescol) · label of April 21, 2025
Used for
From the label: indicationsTherapy with lipid-altering agents should be only one component of multiple risk factor intervention in individuals at significantly increased risk for atherosclerotic vascular disease due to hypercholesterolemia. Drug therapy is indicated as an adjunct to diet when the response to a diet restricted in saturated fat and cholesterol and other non-pharmacologic measures alone has been inadequate. […]
On the market
- Earliest approval on file
- December 31, 1993
- Generic labelers
- 4 labelers
- Pharmacy cost
- $2.88 per tablet
Supply and safety
- Shortage
- A presentation being discontinued
- Recalls
- 2
Highlights of the pravastatin record
Pravastatin (Pravachol) · label of July 31, 2026
Used for
From the label: indicationsPravastatin sodium tablets are indicated: To reduce the risk of myocardial infarction, myocardial revascularization procedures, and cardiovascular mortality in adults with elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) without clinically evident coronary heart disease (CHD). […]
On the market
- Earliest approval on file
- October 31, 1991
- Generic labelers
- 37 labelers
- Pharmacy cost
- $0.058 per tablet
Supply and safety
- Shortage
- No current entry
- Recalls
- 17
Source: FDA drug labels via openFDA (Fluvastatin label of April 21, 2025, Pravastatin label of July 31, 2026); NDC Directory, Drugs@FDA, NADAC, FDA shortages and recalls (October 8, 2026)
How do fluvastatin and pravastatin differ on the record?
How each works, in its label's words: Fluvastatin, “Fluvastatin sodium is a competitive inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, the rate limiting enzyme that converts 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) to mevalonate, a precursor of sterols …”; Pravastatin, “Pravastatin is a reversible inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, the rate-limiting enzyme that converts HMG-CoA to mevalonate, a precursor of cholesterol.”
Both are in FDA's class HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors.
Half-life, in each label's words: Fluvastatin, “The elimination half-life (t 1/2 ) of fluvastatin is approximately 3 hours.”; Pravastatin, “Following single dose oral administration of 14 C-pravastatin, the radioactive elimination t ½ for pravastatin is 1.8 …”
Generics: fluvastatin since 2012; pravastatin since 2006 (Drugs@FDA).
| Fluvastatin | Pravastatin | |
|---|---|---|
| Labeled for | High cholesterol | Heart attack and coronary artery disease, High cholesterol, High triglycerides |
| Pharmacologic class | HMG-CoA Reductase Inhibitor | HMG-CoA Reductase Inhibitor |
| How it works (label) | Fluvastatin sodium is a competitive inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, the rate limiting enzyme that converts 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) to mevalonate, a precursor of sterols, including cholesterol. | Pravastatin is a reversible inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase, the rate-limiting enzyme that converts HMG-CoA to mevalonate, a precursor of cholesterol. |
| Half-life (label) | The elimination half-life (t 1/2 ) of fluvastatin is approximately 3 hours. | Following single dose oral administration of 14 C-pravastatin, the radioactive elimination t ½ for pravastatin is 1.8 hours in humans and the elimination half-life (t ½ ) for total radioactivity (pravastatin plus … |
| Earliest approval on file (Drugs@FDA) | December 31, 1993 | October 31, 1991 |
| First generic approved | April 11, 2012 | April 24, 2006 |
| Generic labelers (NDC) | 4 labelers | 37 labelers |
| Pharmacy cost (NADAC, each one's most listed form; strengths differ) | $2.88 per tablet (Fluvastatin ER 80 mg tablet) | $0.058 per tablet (Pravastatin sodium 20 mg tablet) |
| 12-month price change | +4% | -18% |
| Boxed warning | No | No |
| Shortage now | A presentation being discontinued | No current entry |
| Recalls recorded | 2 | 17 |
| FAERS reports (a report is not proof of cause; counts follow how widely a medicine is used) | 7,505 | 19,683 |
| DEA schedule | none | none |
Source: Drugs@FDA, FDA NDC Directory, CMS NADAC of October 7, 2026, FDA shortages and recalls, FAERS via openFDA (FDA files October 8, 2026)
What do the labels say about using others of their kind?
Fluvastatin label, drug interactionsBleeding and/or increased prothrombin times have been reported in patients taking coumarin anticoagulants concomitantly with other HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors.
Source: FDA drug labels via openFDA
What next?
- Alternatives to fluvastatin
- every medicine labeled for the same conditions