Two new studies published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases offer preliminary evidence that the flu vaccine may not work as well in people taking statins. But there is widespread agreement among experts that the association, much less a demonstration of cause and effect, has not been proven, and that current clinical practice should not be changed because…
Studies Suggest Flu Vaccines May Be Less Effective In People Taking Statins
October 30, 2015 by Leave a Comment
Nissen Urges Prompt Revision Of Cardiovascular Guidelines
October 6, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Sparked by a new study that once again finds serious flaws in the cardiovascular risk calculator at the heart of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association cardiovascular guidelines, Steve Nissen states that “the ACC and AHA should promptly revise the guidelines to address the criticisms offered by independent authorities.” The CV risk calculator is a…
Cholesterol Drugs Haunted By Ghosts Of Past, Present, And Future
October 2, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Cholesterol drugs, both new and old, are in the news again. There’s a lot going on now but the picture won’t really become clear until next month, when the results of a decade-old trial will finally be revealed. Briefly, here’s what’s happening: Two new trials presented fresh evidence that PCSK9s, the much discussed new class of…
Cheaper Generic Statins Beat Brand-Name Statins in Adherence and Outcomes
September 15, 2014 by Leave a Comment
A large observational study finds that people who received a prescription for a generic statin were more likely to take their pills than people who received a prescription for a brand-name statin. This increased adherence appeared to lead to a small but significant improvement in outcomes. … Click here to read the full post on Forbes….
FDA Advisory Panel Offers Cautious Support For Polypill
September 10, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The controversial polypill took one step closer to reaching the US market after receiving a mostly positive reception from the FDA’s Cardiovascular and Renal Drugs Advisory Committee on Wednesday. The idea for the polypill– which in this case would be composed of aspirin, a statin, and one or more blood pressure drugs– has been kicking around for…
Statins And Diabetes: A Clearer Picture Emerges
September 9, 2014 by 1 Comment
In recent years, the medical community has become increasingly aware that taking statins can result in slightly higher glucose levels, and this can lead to a diagnosis of diabetes in a small but statistically significant number of people. But it has been unclear whether the diagnosis of diabetes in people taking statins also places them…
Why Guidelines Should Be Waged Like War
August 22, 2014 by 1 Comment
(Updated) Here’s a modest proposal: we need fewer and shorter guidelines. In fact, I’d like to propose that guidelines, like war, should be waged only when there is absolute consensus and overwhelming evidence. Anyone interested in the subject is aware that guidelines are in a complete mess. Just in the past two weeks I’ve written about…
No Retraction For You! Review Panel Exonerates Medical Journal In Statin Kerfuffle
August 2, 2014 by Leave a Comment
An independent review panel has rejected a demand by a prominent researcher that TheBMJ retract two controversial articles. The report largely exonerates the journal’s editors from any wrongdoing. As previously reported, Rory Collins, a prominent researcher and head of the Cholesterol Treatment Trialists’ (CTT) Collaboration, had demanded that TheBMJ retract two articles that were highly critical of statins. Although TheBMJ issued a correction…
Guideline Critics Shift Attacks From Beta Blockers To Statins
August 1, 2014 by Leave a Comment
With the release today of updated European and US guidelines the ongoing controversy regarding beta-blockers appears to be resolved. But that doesn’t necessarily mean there will be an outbreak of guideline peace and harmony. The critics who helped ignite the controversy over beta blockers now say new statin recommendations contained in the guidelines are based on deeply flawed evidence….
BMJ Names Panel Members To Review Disputed Statin Articles
May 19, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The BMJ has released the names of an outside expert panel who will decide the fate of two articles that are the subject of a heated dispute. As previously reported, last week the BMJ published a correction to two papers published last year, explaining that both papers had inaccurately overstated the incidence of the adverse effects of statins. However, a…
Disappointing Results For Statins In Two NIH Trials
May 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Two NHLBI studies have failed to find any benefit for statin therapy in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Previous observational studies had raised the possibility that statins, perhaps due to their anti-inflammatory effects, might improve outcomes in people with these serious diseases. But both trials were stopped early by…
BMJ Articles Critical Of Statins Provoke Kerfuffle
May 14, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The authors of two BMJ articles have withdrawn statements about the adverse effects of statins. The two papers inaccurately cite an earlier publication and therefore overstate the incidence of adverse effects of statins. As a result, the two papers have drawn much criticism and set off a kerfuffle involving the editor of BMJ and a prominent British trialist who is demanding…
12.8 Million More Adults Now Eligible For Statin Therapy
March 19, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Millions more people are now eligible for statin therapy under the new cholesterol guideline, according to a new estimate published in the New England Journal of Medicine. … There have been many attempts to quantify just how many more people are now eligible for statin therapy under the new guideline. Now in the new paper in NEJM, Michael Pencina…
Reassuring News About Statins From Two Very Different Studies
March 14, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Although clinical trials have consistently demonstrated the benefits of statins, the perception that the drugs can cause serious side effects has prompted some patients to discontinue or not take the drugs. Now two new very different studies, one a large meta-analysis and one a tiny study with only a handful of patients, provide some convincing reassurance…
Pfizer Starts Testing For Over-The-Counter Lipitor
March 2, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Looking backward to improve its future, Pfizer will once again try to gain FDA approval to market its blockbuster drug, atorvastatin (Lipitor), over-the-counter (OTC). Peter Loftus reports in the Wall Street Journal that the company has started a clinical study to support the application for low-dose atorvastatin (10 mg). … Click here to read the full post on Forbes….
Dispatch From The Wild Frontier Of The Statin Wars
December 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The long simmering controversy over the relative benefits and harms of statins has heated to a high boil with the release of the new AHA/ACC US guidelines. But nowhere is the battle more intense right now than in Australia where, according to the National Heart Foundation, a TV show may be the cause of 2,000 heart attacks…
A Clear-Eyed View Of Statins And Cataracts
September 20, 2013 by 1 Comment
Past observational studies have turned up conflicting findings about the effects, if any, of statins on developing cataracts. Now a large new observational study finds a small but significant increase in cataracts in statin users, but experts warn that without further support the new finding should probably not influence clinical practice. In a paper published in JAMA…
FDA Approves Combination Of Ezetimibe And Atorvastatin
May 3, 2013 by Leave a Comment
The FDA has approved a new combination drug from Merck for lowering cholesterol. The drug, which will carry the brand name of Liptruzet, is a combination of two previously approved cholesterol-lowering drugs, ezetimibe and atorvastatin. Merck said the new drug (pronounced “LIP-true-zett”) would be commercially available starting next week. Liptruzet will be available as a…
Lifelong Statin Sentence Now Includes Furloughs
April 2, 2013 by 1 Comment
Although the benefits of statins are among the best documented in all of medicine, continuous lifelong statin therapy is not always easy to achieve in clinical practice. Now a new retrospective study suggests that although clinical events causing temporary cessation of statin therapy occur often, most of these patients are later able to resume statin…
Following Earlier Recall, Ranbaxy Halts Manufacturing Atorvastatin
November 29, 2012 by Leave a Comment
Ranbaxy, the often-troubled manufacturer of generic drugs, will temporarily stop manufacturing generic atorvastatin. On November 9, 2012 the company announced a voluntary recall of some lots of atorvastatin because of possible contamination with glass particles. An FDA statement today said that Ranbaxy will discontinue making the drug “until it has thoroughly investigated the cause of the…
Statins and Exercise, Independently Beneficial, Even Better In Combination
November 27, 2012 by 2 Comments
It’s no secret that statins and exercise are good for people with cholesterol problems. Now a new study published in the Lancet offers fresh evidence that the two appear to be independently beneficial, and that adding the two together may result in greater benefits than either alone. US researchers analyzed data from 10,043 people with dyslipidemia…
Statins Use Linked To Reduction In Cancer Mortality
November 7, 2012 by 1 Comment
A large new population study rasies the possibility that statin use may lead to a decline in cancer mortality. Researchers in Denmark utilized health data from the entire population of the country and analyzed the information from nearly 300,000 patients who were diagnosed with cancer between 1995 and 2007. The authors note that the relationship is biologically…
Reports From JUPITER And Taiwan: Benefits Of Statins Outweigh Risk Of Diabetes
August 9, 2012 by 1 Comment
Two new papers provide further evidence that statin usage is associated with an increased risk of diabetes, but both studies also find that the benefits of statins still outweigh the risks. In the first report, published in the Lancet, Paul Ridker and colleagues analyze data from the JUPITER trial, which compared rosuvastatin to placebo in…
Authors Retract Article About Websites That Sell Statins Without Prescriptions
July 30, 2012 by Leave a Comment
An article in Pharmacoepidemiology and Drug Safety about websites that advertise statins to consumers has been retracted by the authors after one company mentioned in the article disputed the authors’ assertion that the company sold statins to patients who did not have a prescription. The news was reported on Retraction Watch. Here’s the notice: The following article…
Are Statins Equally Effective In Women And In Men?
June 25, 2012 by 1 Comment
Jose Gutierrez and colleagues performed a sex-based meta-analysis, seeking to determine if statins yield a similar protective effect on both men and women in preventing recurrent cardiovascular events. In a paper published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, they report the results of their meta-analysis of 11 secondary prevention, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trials, which included 43, 193 patients…
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