SOME PATIENTS CAN OVERCOME SIDE EFFECTS OF STATINS

USA Today (4/2, Lloyd, 1.71M) reports that, according to research published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, some patients who stop using statins due to side effects can successfully start taking the drugs again at a reduced dose. During "a nine-year study of records of 107,835 patients at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, 11,124 had discontinued statins because of a side effect." The researchers found that, "among that group, half started again at a lower dose or used a different statin drug; 90% had stayed on the drug 12 months later."

On its "Daily Dose" blog, the Boston Globe (4/2, Kotz, 250K) reports that, according to Dr. Alexander Turchin, the senior author of the study, "What we found is that if someone has to go off of a statin due to side effects like muscle aches, it may be worth trying the drug again, especially if a person has had a previous heart attack or stroke or has established heart disease."

Reuters (4/2, Pittman) points out that approximately 25 percent of adults in the US use statins.

Heartwire (4/2, O'Riordan) reports that Dr Scott Grundy of the University of Texas Southwestern, in an editorial accompanying the study, "said that the current clinical guidelines 'virtually mandate' lifetime use of statins once they are started, although this can be a challenge for many patients. These new data do confirm that discontinuation rates are relatively high but are reassuring in that most patients can tolerate the drugs in the long term if they are rechallenged." Grundy "notes that many patients blame the medications for various side effects, a natural tendency." HealthDay (4/2, Norton) also covers the story.

POSTED BY: Steven Almany M.D.