Following New Statin Guidelines Could Save 50,000 Lives

Half a million lives could be saved from heart attack or stroke if new guidelines concerning cholesterol medication were thoroughly followed, according a recent analysis.

The analysis, which was published in The New England Journal of Medicine, has determined that under guidelines concerning cholesterol medicine, approximately 56 million Americans are eligible to consider taking statins.

Statins, are used to treat patients with high cholesterol levels by inhibiting the enzyme HMG-CoA reductase. This enzyme aids the liver in producing an estimated 70 percent of the total cholesterol in the body; thus, suppressing HMG-CoA reductase should considerably slow down the rate at which the body produces cholesterol. Of course, slowing the rate of production leads to an eventual decline in cholesterol levels overall.

New heart health guidelines, developed by the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology last November, introduced a new way for officials to estimate risks of heart attack, stroke, and heart disease. Now blood pressure, smoking, and cholesterol levels all are considered when calculating risk.

The guidelines also are personalized by gender and race for the first time ever, showing that heath organizations are beginning to recognize even slight difference in biological profiles can contribute to a noticeable difference in the effectiveness of certain treatments. One of the most important changes with these guidelines was that the prescription of statins suddenly became highly recommended.

Researchers from Duke University set out to measure the impact the establishment these new guidelines on professionals and patients alike. Using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys of 2005 to 2010, the Duke team estimated the number of people in the U.S. who would qualify for statin therapy under the new guidelines, as compared to the guidelines of enacted prior to November 2013.

They found that an additional 13 million Americans were granted access to statins with the new guidelines alongside the 43 million who were qualified under the old recommendations.

They also found that only 25 million people are taking statins now -- well under half the recommended numbers. Combining this data with average heart attack and stroke risks among those who do not regularly take statins, the team estimated that nearly half a million additional heart attacks and strokes could be prevented over the next ten years if statin use was elevated to the guideline's recommended numbers.

In a related turn of events, statins have also recently been found to be a promising treatment option for slowing the effects of advancing multiple sclerosis.

The study was published in The New England Journal of Medicine on March 19.