CardioExchange Archive

September 26th, 2011

Statins for Primary Prevention: The Debate Continues

Larry Husten, PHD

Several leading cardiologists have taken issue with the assertion made by Rita Redberg and the editors of the Archives of Internal Medicine that using statins for primary prevention is an example “of the widespread use of medications with known adverse effects despite the absence of data for patient benefit for these indications.” In a research letter published in the […]

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August 4th, 2011

Pfizer Wants to Market OTC Atorvastatin (Lipitor)

Larry Husten, PHD

Pfizer will attempt to gain FDA approval to sell atorvastatin (Lipitor) over-the-counter, according to a report by Peter Loftus in the Wall Street Journal. In the past, the FDA has turned down requests to market other statins over-the-counter. Lipitor is scheduled to go off patent in November, well before an OTC version of the drug […]

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June 21st, 2011

Meta-Analysis Examines Risk of Diabetes Associated with Statins

Larry Husten, PHD

Although the cardiovascular benefits of statin therapy are well-characterized, recent studies have raised concerns that intensive statin therapy increases the risk for developing type 2 diabetes. Now, a new meta-analysis published in JAMA provides a more precise estimate of the risk for diabetes associated with statin therapy and also weighs that risk against the cardiovascular […]

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June 8th, 2011

FDA Recommends Limiting Use of High-Dose Simvastatin

Larry Husten, PHD

The FDA today recommended significant limitations in the use of high-dose (80 mg) simvastatin because of the increased risk for myopathy. The FDA said the 80-mg dose should be used only in people who have been taking the high dose for at least one year and have had no evidence of myopathy. The high dose […]

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February 17th, 2011

Quarter of U.S. Adults 45 and Older Taking Statins

Larry Husten, PHD

One-quarter of U.S. adults age 45 and older are taking statins, and one-half of men ages 65 to 74 are taking these drugs, according to the CDC’s annual report on trends in health statistics. From 1988 to 1994, only 2% of adults age 45 and older were taking statins. High cholesterol levels have been declining, according to […]

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January 28th, 2011

Does CRP Level Modify the Benefit of Statins? Paul Ridker Reacts to New Data

Paul Ridker, MD, MPH

CardioExchange welcomes Paul M. Ridker, a leading researcher on the value of C-reactive protein (CRP) concentration as a prognostic marker of cardiovascular risk, to respond to the latest data on CRP and statin therapy from the Heart Protection Study (HPS). The New HPS Findings on CRP: The HPS investigators sought to determine whether statin therapy might […]

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January 27th, 2011

HPS Results Suggest Baseline CRP Doesn’t Predict Statin Efficacy

Larry Husten, PHD

Analysis of data from the Heart Protection Study (HPS) indicates that a CRP measurement obtained at baseline does not predict the effect of statin therapy. In a paper published online in the Lancet, the HPS Collaborative Group report the results of the more than 20,000-patient HPS study based on CRP category at baseline. As previously reported, […]

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January 19th, 2011

Review Raises Questions About Statins for Primary Prevention

Larry Husten, PHD

A Cochrane Review raises troubling questions about the evidence base supporting the use of statins for primary prevention. The Cochrane reviewers analyzed 14 randomized trials including 34,272 participants and found that statins were associated with significant reductions in overall mortality, fatal and nonfatal CV endpoints, and revascularization procedures. The reviewers found no evidence of harm. However, […]

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November 23rd, 2010

Greek Study Offers Reassurance About Statin Usage in Patients with Abnormal Liver Tests

Larry Husten, PHD

In the GREACE (Greek Atorvastatin and Coronary Heart Disease Evaluation) study, 1600 patients with coronary heart disease were randomized to atorvastatin or usual care; of these, 437 had moderately abnormal liver tests at baseline, suggesting non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). In a post-hoc analysis of this subset of patients, published in the Lancet, the GREACE Study […]

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