Statins could reduce more strokes and heart attacks

Statin drugs should be used to prevent heart attacks and strokes in patients, regardless of whether they have high cholesterol levels or not, a new study has claimed.

Statins tend to be prescribed to people with high cholesterol levels in order to minimise the risk of heart attacks or strokes.

However, researchers from the Universities of Oxford and Sydney have said that patients with lower cholesterol levels could also benefit from taking the drugs.

The study, published in the ‘Lancet’, examined results from over 90,000 participants in 14 trials of statin treatments. The researchers found that the benefits from using statins were greatest in those patients whose cholesterol levels were reduced the most from using the drugs, regardless of the cholesterol levels before the treatment began.

Dr Colin Baigent, who co-ordinated the Oxford University team, said: “This study shows that statin drugs could be beneficial in a much wider range of patients than is currently considered for treatment.

“What matters most is that doctors identify all patients at risk of a heart attack of stroke, largely ignoring their present blood cholesterol level, and then prescribe a statin at a daily dose that reduces their cholesterol substantially.”

The authors of the study also said that there was “no good evidence” to suggest that the use of statins could increase the risk of cancer, although previous studies had indicated that there might be an increased risk of developing some cancers from using the drugs.

Professor Rory Collins, one of the authors, said: “Statins are very safe. There is no good evidence that statins cause cancer, nor do they increase the risk of other diseases.”

Professor Collins added that, although there was a small risk of developing muscular pain or weakness through the use of statins, it was “far outweighed” by the benefits in terms of reduction in risk of heart attacks and strokes.

(KMcA/SP)