How Do Statins Prevent Heart Attacks and Strokes?

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How Do Statins Prevent Heart Attacks and Strokes?

Millions of people in the US take statin medication. The main way statins can reduce your risk of a heart attack or stroke is by lowering your cholesterol levels. Cholesterol is a fatty substance made by the liver. There are two major types of cholesterol: good, HDL, and bad, LDL. Bad cholesterol can leave fatty deposits in your arteries that build up, restricting blood flow and increasing your risk for a heart attack or stroke. If you are already at high risk for a heart attack or stroke, your health care provider may suggest adding a statin in addition to making healthy lifestyle changes. Statins help cut the amount of bad cholesterol your body makes. You'll have a blood test before starting your statin and afterwards, to check if it's lowering your cholesterol. Statins can reduce the amount of fatty deposits in your arteries and stop any more from building up. Statins also make existing deposits less likely to break off and cause a blood clot. A blood clot can cause a heart attack or stroke. It's important to take your statin medication every day. You can remember to take your statin by making it part of your daily routine, like brushing your teeth or eating a meal. Most people don't have side effects from statins, but as with any drug, some people do. Side effects are usually mild. Muscle pain is a possible, though uncommon, side effect. Don’t stop taking your statin if you think you’re having side effects. Your cholesterol level is likely to go up and this could put you at risk for a heart attack or stroke. Speak to your doctor or health care team about your concerns. If needed, they can change your statin to a different one that may work better for you. A study of more than 135,000 people at risk for a heart attack or stroke found that those who took statins had a 25% lower risk of having a heart attack or stroke compared to those who did not take statins. Statins are among the safest and most studied medications. Statins save lives and prevent heart attacks and strokes. Learn more about lowering your cholesterol at millionhearts.hhs.gov. .

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What Precautions Should We Use with Statins for Women of Childbearing
CLINICAL INQUIRIES What precautions should we use with statins for women of childbearing age? Chaitany Patel, MD, Lisa Edgerton, PharmD New Hanover Regional Medical Center, Wilmington, North Carolina Donna Flake, MSLS, MSAS Coastal Area Health Education Center, Wilmington, NC EVIDENCE- BASED ANSWER Statins are contraindicated for women who are on its low tissue-penetration properties. pregnant or breastfeeding. Data evaluating statin Cholesterol-lowering with simvastatin 40 mg/d did use for women of childbearing age is limited; how- not disrupt menstrual cycles or effect luteal phase ever, they may be used cautiously with adequate duration (strength of recommendation: C). contraception. Pravastatin may be preferred based CLINICAL COMMENTARY Use statins only as a last resort Before reading this review, I had not been for women of childbearing age ® Dowdenaware Health of the serious Media effects of statin medications I try to follow the USPSTF recommendations and on the developing fetus. In conversations with not screen women aged <45 years without coro- my colleagues, I found that the adverse effects nary artery disease riskCopyright factors for Fhyperlipidemia.or personalof usestatins onlyduring pregnancy are not readily When a woman of any age needs treatment, my known. Such information needs to be more first-line therapy is lifestyle modification. Given the widely disseminated. risks of statin drugs to the developing fetus, Ariel Smits, MD women with childbearing potential should give Department of Family Medicine, Oregon Health & Science fully informed consent and be offered reliable University, Portland contraception before stating statin therapy. I Evidence summary anal, cardiac, tracheal, esophageal, renal, Hydroxymethyl glutaryl coenzyme A and limb deficiency (VACTERL associa- (HMG CoA) reductase inhibitors, com- tion), intrauterine growth retardation monly called statins, have been on the (IUGR), and demise in fetuses exposed market since the late 1980s.
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Effect of Statins and ACE Inhibitors Alone and in Combination on Clinical Outcome in Patients with Coronary Heart Disease
Journal of Human Hypertension (2004) 18, 781–788 & 2004 Nature Publishing Group All rights reserved 0950-9240/04 $30.00 www.nature.com/jhh ORIGINAL ARTICLE Effect of statins and ACE inhibitors alone and in combination on clinical outcome in patients with coronary heart disease VG Athyros1, DP Mikhailidis3, AA Papageorgiou2, VI Bouloukos1, AN Pehlivanidis1, AN Symeonidis4 and M Elisaf5, for the GREACE Study Collaborative Group 1Atherosclerosis Unit, Aristotelian University, Hippocration Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece; 2Department of Clinical Biochemistry, Royal Free Hospital, Royal Free and University College Medical School, Pond Street, London, UK; 32nd Propedeutic Department of Internal Medicine, Aristotelian University, Hippocration Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece; 4Greek Society of General Practitioners, Thessaloniki, Greece; 5Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School, University of Ioannina, Greece We assessed the ‘synergy’ of statins and angiotensin- point in group A was 31%, (95% CI À48 to À6%, P ¼ 0.01) converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI) in reducing vascu- in comparison to group B, 59% (95% CI À72 to À48%, lar events in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Po0.0001) to group C and 63% (95% CI À74 to À51%, The GREek Atorvastatin and CHD Evaluation (GREACE) Po0.0001) to group D. There was no significant Study, suggested that aggressive reduction of low difference in RRR between groups C and D (9%, CI density lipoprotein cholesterol to 2.59 mmol/l À27–10%, P ¼ 0.1). Other factors (eg the blood pressure) (o100 mg/dl) significantly reduces morbidity and mor- that can influence clinical outcome did not differ tality in CHD patients, in comparison to undertreated significantly between the four treatment groups.
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Get the Facts: What You Need to Know About Statins
Get the Facts: What You Need to Know About Statins We hear a lot about lowering our cholesterol by eating a low-fat diet and getting regular exercise. But for some people, making healthy changes isn’t enough. That’s when statins come in. Statins are medicines that reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, two of the leading causes of death in the United States. These medicines keep the liver from making cholesterol and help it get rid of cholesterol in the blood. Statins may help if you have high cholesterol, heart disease or are at high risk for heart disease or stroke. Things that can put you at high risk include being a current or former smoker, stress, having diabetes and/or high blood pressure, having a family history of heart disease or stroke, or being overweight. This means you do not have to have high cholesterol to benefit from taking statins. What Are Some Examples of Statins? Below is a list of statins you may have heard of and where you can find them on the SCAN Health Plan® Formulary (Note: The SCAN Formulary and the Formulary tier are subject to change, especially from year to year.): Statin Formulary Status Brand Name Generic Name Lipitor® Atorvastatin Tier 1 Mevacor® Lovastatin Tier 1 Pravachol® Pravastatin Tier 1 Zocor® Simvastatin Tier 1 Crestor® Rosuvastatin Tier 2 Lescol® Fluvastatin Not available Livalo® Pitavastatin Not available Statins can also be combined with other cholesterol-lowering and blood pressure drugs into one pill but may have higher copays. If you have questions about these combination pills and their copays, please talk to your pharmacist.
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FDA Requests Removal of Strongest Warning Against Using Cholesterol
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