Statins Reduce CHD Risk by 27%

Lowering of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) with statins in individuals with high LDL-C levels was associated with significantly decreased risk of all-cause and cardiovascular-related mortality, according to a recent study.

The post-hoc analysis used data from the West Of Scotland Coronary Prevention Study (WOSCOPS). WOSCOPS was a randomized, placebo-controlled trial that included 6596 men aged 45 to 64 years who were randomly assigned to receive 40 mg of pravastatin per day or placebo. Additionally, the study conducted a 20-year observational follow-up.
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In their analysis of WOSCOPS, the researchers stratified 5529 participants without CVD at baseline based on LDL-C levels: those with LDL-C levels below 190 mg/dL (n=2969) and those with LDL-C levels of 190 mg/dL or more (n=2560). Incidents of coronary heart disease (CHD) and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) were assessed over the 4.9 years of the trial phase, and mortality outcomes were assessed over the 20 years of follow-up.

Overall, pravastatin reduced the risk of CHD by 27% and MACE by 25% for all participants, including those with LDL-C levels below 190 mg/dL. During the trial phase, the use of pravastatin reduced the risk of CHD by 27% and MACE by 25% among participants with LDL-C levels of 190 mg/dL or more. In addition, pravastatin reduced the risk of CHD-related death by 28%, CVD-related death by 25%, and all-cause mortality by 18% over the 20 years of follow-up for participants with LDL-C levels of 190 mg/dL or more.

“The present analyses provide robust novel evidence for the short and long-term benefits of lowering LDL-C for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease among individuals with primary elevations of LDL-C ±190 mg/dL,” the researchers concluded.

—Melissa Weiss

Reference:

Vallejo-Vaz AJ, Robertson M, Catapano AL, et al. LDL-cholesterol lowering for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease among men with primary elevations of LDL-cholesterol levels of 190 mg/dL or above: analyses from the WOSCOPS 5-year randomised trial and 20-year observational follow-Up [published online September 6, 2017]. Circulation. https://doi.org/10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.117.027966.