Little Evidence to Support Statins in Low-Risk Patients

By Staff

2/18/2011

US Pharm. 2011;36(2):6.

London, UK–According to a new Cochrane Systematic Review, there is not enough evidence to recommend the widespread use of cholesterol-lowering statins in people with no previous history of cardiovascular disease. Researchers reviewed data from 14 trials involving statins to prevent heart disease in healthy populations, and found that the drugs did not provide benefit over placebo. Given that low cholesterol has been shown to increase the risk of death from other causes, these drugs may do more harm than good in some patients. Careful consideration should be given to patients’ individual risk profiles before prescribing statins. “It is not as simple as just extrapolating the effects from studies in people who have a history of heart disease,” said lead researcher Fiona Taylor, from the Cochrane Heart Group at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

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