# Rosuvastatin pronunciation? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 14, 2020, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosuvastatin-pronunciation/918103 "2020-08-14T16:27:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosuvastatin-pronunciation/918103/1 "2020-08-14T16:27:12Z")
I can’t remember how my doctor said it but I think of it as ro-SU-vastatin. The automated voice at Walgreens calls it rosu-VAST-atin. Is that voice programmed to pronounce drugs correctly? Dennis ---
**Author:** ![BippityBoppityBoo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bippityboppityboo/32/5745_2.png) [@BippityBoppityBoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BippityBoppityBoo)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosuvastatin-pronunciation/918103/2 "2020-08-14T17:03:56Z")
> [@mixdenny](#): > > ro-SU-vastatin. Take the easy way out: call it “Crestor”, the brand name. You might make friends and it sure is easier. ---
**Author:** ![eschrodinger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschrodinger/32/122_2.png) [@eschrodinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschrodinger)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosuvastatin-pronunciation/918103/3 "2020-08-14T18:04:34Z")
Wikipedia agrees with your choice of stressed syllable. It’s also how I would pronounce it, but it’s not like I’m an authority. The class of drugs is called STAtins, though, and the robovoice messes up that part of the word, so that’s additional evidence, I think. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosuvastatin-pronunciation/918103/4 "2020-08-15T06:51:53Z")
When I first started taking Atorvastatin, I pronounced it atorVAStatin. Then I realized that it’s a statin, so I corrected to atorvaSTAtin. The automated voice is wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosuvastatin-pronunciation/918103/5 "2020-08-15T06:56:58Z")
Wikipedia has the emphasis on the second syllable, see pronunciation at the right side just below the structure. > **[Rosuvastatin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosuvastatin)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > Rosuvastatin, sold under the brand name Crestor among others, is a statin medication, used to prevent cardiovascular disease in those at high risk and treat abnormal lipids. It is recommended to be used together with dietary changes, exercise, and weight loss. It is taken by mouth. > Common side effects include abdominal pain, nausea, headaches, and muscle pains. Serious side effects may include rhabdomyolysis, liver problems, and diabetes. Use dur... Given that it’s a statin, the syllable structure is clearly ro-su-va-stat-in, the recording is surely wrong. I think the only two plausible pronunciations would put the primary emphasis on “su”, as your doctor and Wikipedia have it; or secondary empahsis on “su” and primary emphasis on “stat”. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [August 15, 2020, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rosuvastatin-pronunciation/918103/6 "2020-08-15T14:55:40Z")
> [@mixdenny](#): > > I think of it as ro-SU-vastatin. I take the stuff. All the medics I’ve ever talked to or given my med list to pronounce as you wrote above. So that’s about a dozen votes by folks who should know what they’re saying. Though for some of them the “SU” sounds more like “ZU” or a hybrid halfway between s & z. All automated voice systems mess up complex words unless someone takes the time to manually decompose the word into a phonetic spelling the machine can interpret properly. In my industry we just get used to the many technical terms the main automated system pronounces badly. Consistently, but badly.