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Cholesterol-lowering
statin drugs work to lower "bad" LDL cholesterol
in clinical trials, however, in reality many patients do not
stick to the pill-taking routine, rendering the treatment
less effective than initially thought.
According to a
recent study of 400 new statin users, levels of LDL cholesterol
were lowered one-third less than expected from clinical trials.
Three statin drugs, atorvastatin (Lipitor), simvastatin (Zocor)
and pravastatin (Pravachol), were involved in the study and
all three yielded similar results.
The gap between
expected and actual outcomes may be due to patients’
adherence to the medications as well as diet, researchers
say.
Additionally, some
patients responded highly to the drugs while others did not.
According to researchers, this variation indicates that poor
results are likely due to a low compliance with treatment
recommendations.
Patients may not
adhere to statin therapy, which has been shown to lower the
risk of both LDL cholesterol and the risk of heart attack,
for several reasons. Researchers mention monetary reasons,
concerns about the drug’s safety and simply not remembering
as possible reasons.
Though statins
are thought to be generally safe, one such drug, Baycol (cerivastatin),
was recently recalled due to adverse side effects including
severe muscle weakness and several deaths from rhabdomyolysis,
which causes muscle to break down.
The recall has
raised fears over statin side effects; however several national
institutes, including the American Heart Association and the
American College of Cardiology, have recently stated that
the drugs are safe and effective in treating high cholesterol.
American
Journal of Medicine December 2002;113:625-629
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