Study: Statins Lower CV Risk in Intermediate-Risk Patients

In a randomized clinical trial involving more than 12,700 individuals, rosuvastatin lowered cardiovascular events in people at intermediate risk of cardiovascular disease. These findings and others from the HOPE-3 trial were released at last week’s American College of Cardiology’s 65^th Annual Scientific Session (April 2-4, 2016; Chicago, IL) and were simultaneously published three separate studies in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Investigators conducted a study to evaluate the benefits of the anti-cholesterol drug rosuvastatin (10 mg per day), the anti-hypertensive therapy candesartan/hydrochlorothiazide (16 mg/12.5 mg), or both versus placebo in participants who did not have cardiovascular disease but who were at intermediate risk of developing the disease.

Patients treated with rosuvastatin had average LDL cholesterol levels more than 26% lower than those taking placebo. Additionally, rosuvastatin lowered patients’ risk of dying from cardiovascular events by 24% compared with those who took placebo. Those taking rosuvastatin were also 25% less likely to require revascularization, develop heart failure, or experience cardiac arrest resulting in resuscitation compared with those taking placebo.

The candesartan/hydrochlorothiazide combination did not significantly lower the incidence of cardiovascular events versus placebo in patients overall; however, it did benefit those whose systolic BP was >143 mm Hg.

Among the 3180 individuals who received both rosuvastatin and the combination therapy candesartan/hydrochlorothiazide (16 mg/12.5 mg), the decrease in LDL cholesterol was nearly 34 mg/dL greater than in those taking placebo, and systolic blood pressure was reduced by 6.2 mm Hg compared with those taking placebo. The combination treatment lowered patients’ risk of dying from cardiovascular events by nearly 30% compared with those who took placebo. Those in the treatment group were also 28% less likely to require revascularization, develop heart failure, or experience cardiac arrest, compared to those taking placebo.

References 

Lonn EM, Bosch J, Lopez-Jaramillo, et al. Blood-pressure lowering in intermediate-risk persons without cardiovascular disease [published online ahead of print April 2, 2016]. N Eng J Med. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1600175.

Yusuf S, Bosch J, Dagenais G, et al. Cholesterol lowering in intermediate-risk persons without cardiovascular disease [published online ahead of print April 2, 2016]. N Eng J Med. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1600176.

Yusuf S, Lonn E, Pais P. Blood-Pressure and Cholesterol Lowering in Persons without Cardiovascular Disease [published online ahead of print April 2, 2016]. N Eng J Med. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa1600177.