Statins May Reduce Cardiovascular Risk in Older Adults, But Side Effects Cause for Concern

Routine statin therapy in adults 75 years of age and older may be cost-effective for preventing heart attacks and death from coronary heart disease, a new study finds. However, researchers warn that even a small increase in side effects that hamper function or impair cognition could offset any cardiovascular benefit.“Physical and cognitive independence are two things that are very important to older adults,” said researcher Michelle Odden, PhD, assistant professor of epidemiology, Oregon State University. “Both conditions are so impactful that a small increase in risk may not be worth the gains in cardiovascular health.”

Dr. Odden and colleagues used computer modeling to gauge the impact and cost-effectiveness of routine statin use in adults 75 to 94 years of age. They found that statin treatment could help prevent cardiovascular incidents including heart attack and stroke as well as their associated costs. However, they also found that an increase of just 10% to 30% in risk of physical or cognitive side effects would cancel out the benefits of statin use. “We do not know what the true risk is,” Dr. Odden said. “But we know statin use is very sensitive to these other risks in older populations.”

Consequently, researchers recommended additional research on potential benefits and harms of statins, including clinical trials involving older adults. “Statins look promising as an intervention for this population, but there are concerns about potential physical or cognitive side effects,” said Dr. Odden in a press release. “It is not all good or all bad; we are in a gray area.” The researchers published their findings in a recent issue of Annals of Internal Medicine (https://annals.org/article.aspx?articleid=2275384).