March 23, 2002
ATLANTA, Georgia (ACC) -- Two
researchers report the effectiveness of statin therapy in two
patient populations—patients who recently underwent a first
angioplasty and patients who have undergone a percutaneous
coronary intervention (PCI)—at a news conference Sunday,
March 17, 2002. Their results show that statins reduce
low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels in first-time
angioplasty patients and lower mortality in PCI patients.
Patrick W. Serruys, MD, of Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the
Netherlands, presented the results of the LIPS, or “Lescol
Intervention Prevention Study.” He compared the effect of
fluvastatin (40 mg bid) on patients who had experienced a major
cardiac event after a recent first angioplasty. Patients taking
the drug, which was given 2.7 days after the procedure, had LDL
levels of 137 or less over a three- to four-year period.
Those on the statin also had a 22 percent risk reduction for a
major adverse cardiac event, added Dr. Serruys. When looking at
secondary endpoints, he found that patients with diabetes or
multilevel diseases also reduced their risk for major adverse
coronary events. According to Dr. Serruys, this trial supports
the use of early lipid-lowering medication in post-PCI patients.
Albert W. Chan, MD, of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation,
described the results of a study that looked at whether there
was a survival benefit associated with statin therapy at the
time of PCI. Of 6,647 patients studied, 23.5 percent were
treated with a statin at the time of PCI. Dr. Chan found that
statin therapy was associated with a 60 percent lower mortality
at 30 days and a 37 percent reduction at six months. |
