According to several studies, in patients with high-risk atherosclerotic disease, such as those affected by coronary artery disease, achieving target LDL levels through high-intensity statin therapy has been shown to lead to a significant reduction in long-term cardiovascular events. Therefore, the management of dyslipidemia has become a fundamental pillar of secondary prevention. However, reaching such...
Could Statins Do More than Lower Cholesterol in COVID-19 Patients?
A history of acute myocardial Infarction, cardiac failure or hyperlipidemia has been associated with increased mortality of COVID-19. Observational studies have suggested statins might reduce death risk from COVID-19, in addition to lowering cholesterol. Statins have anti-inflammatory and antithrombotic effects that could play a role in the course of the infection. Other studies have arrived...
AHA 2020 | Statins: Confirmed Benefits for the Elderly
Elderly patients (>70) with high cholesterol levels have been systematically excluded from randomized studies on statins, despite their higher risk of cardiovascular events. Presented at AHA 2020 Scientific Sessions and published simultaneously in the Lancet, along comes this primary prevention study including patients between 70 and 100 years of age. The use of therapies to...
Virtual ACC 2020 | Statins Could Also Protect Against Chemotherapy Cardiotoxicity
This retrospective study has shown a reduction in hospitalization for cardiac failure in patients who were already using statins receiving anthracycline and trastuzumab in the context of breast cancer. The study was to be presented during the ACC 2020 scientific sessions together with the World Congress of Cardiology. However, it had to be called off...
AHA 2019 | Treat Stroke to Target: Post-Stroke Aggressive Therapy with Statins
Indicating statins to reach more aggressive LDL goals in patients that have suffered transient ischemic attack or ischemic stroke driven by atherosclerosis significantly reduces major cardiovascular events according to this study presented in the AHA 2019 scientific sessions simultaneously published in NEJM. The study was prematurely ended because of lack of funding, but its outcomes...
Statins in Primary Prevention: As Questioned as Aspirin?
This new review, recently published in BMJ, questions the benefit of statins in low-risk primary prevention patients. Authors argue that statins should be more cautiously indicated in primary prevention, considering that their absolute benefit is almost marginal in low-risk patients. Changes in the European guidelines have translated into a wide expansion of patients eligible for...
ACC 2018 | SECURE-PCI: High Dose of Statins pior PCI Could Help
Patients undergoing acute coronary syndrome (ACS) loaded with a high dose of statins prior diagnostic catheterization do not seem to benefit from this strategy. However, when looking at those undergoing PCI alone (excluding all patients who had received surgery or medical treatment), the benefit appears as a reduction of combined major events. The benefit of atorvastatin loading...
What is the effect of statins on amputations, and survival in peripheral vascular disease?
The prevalence of peripheral arterial disease is between 15% and 20% of patients older than 65 years and its severity is greatly underestimated. In fact, annual mortality is higher in patients with peripheral arterial disease (8.2%) than in those after acute myocardial infarction (6.3%). Despite the above, medical advice and efforts to modify risk factors...
ODYSSEY LONG TERM: alirocumab reduces LDL in patients with maximum tolerated doses of statins
The aim of this study was to evaluate treatment with alirocumab a monoclonal antibody against PCSK9 receptor, compared with placebo in patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia or high cardiovascular risk who were at the maximum tolerated dose of statins and LDL >70 mg/dl. A total of 2341 patients randomized to 150 mg alirocumab administered subcutaneously...
STICS: perioperative statins to prevent atrial fibrillation
The aim of this study was to test whether perioperative treatment with rosuvastatin 20 mg could prevent the incidence of postoperative atrial fibrillation and reduce myocardial damage in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. The data showed that rosuvastatin was not effective in preventing the occurrence of atrial fibrillation or reduce myocardial damage measured by troponin. Barbara...