Study: Benefits of Statins Outweigh Risks

The benefits of statin therapy outweigh the potential risks, according to the authors of a recent review article.

In order to further examine available data on the safety and efficacy of statin therapy for the prevention of heart attack and stroke, researchers conducted a review of available evidence.
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They calculated that, based on large-scale evidence from randomized trials, statin therapy reduces the risk of major vascular events by about one-quarter for each mmol/L reduction in LDL cholesterol during each year of statin therapy.

They offer the example that lowering LDL cholesterol by 2 mmol/L for 5 years in 10,000 patients would prevent major vascular events from occurring in about 1000 patients with preexisting occlusive vascular disease and 500 patients who are at increased risk for a vascular event but who have not had one.

They authors name myopathy, new-onset diabetes, and hemorrhagic stroke as potential serious adverse effects of long-term statin treatment, with an estimated 5 cases of myopathy, 50 to 100 cases of diabetes, and 5 to 10 hemorrhagic strokes occurring in the treatment of 10,000 patients for 5 years with statins.

Note: Some of the researchers involved in this review are associated with statin manufacturers.

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Collins R, Reith C, Emberson J, et al. Interpretation of the evidence for the efficacy and safety of statin therapy [published online September 9, 2016]. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31357-5.