a clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy of fluvastatin and lovastatin in comparison wi th placebo in hypercholesterolemic patients

in this study, the effect of lovastatin and fluvastatin was compared with placebo in patients with high levels of total cholesterol and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (ldl-c) on the plasma lipid profile. in a prospective single blind clinical trial with convenient sampling, 120 hypercholesterolemic men and women with tcholesterol ≥220 mg/dl, ldl-c ≥ 160 mg/dl, and triglyceride ≤ 350 mg/dl were selected and divided into 3 groups randomly. the fust group took lovastatin, 20 mg daily, the second group fluvastatin, 40 mg daily, and the third group took a placebo, all for 12 weeks. compared with placebo, drug therapy of hypercholesterolemia with either lovastatin or fluvastatin decreased total cholesterol and ldl-c levels significantly but had no effect on high density lipoprotein and triglyceride values. decrease of total cholesterol and ld l-c levels by both drugs are similar after the first 6 weeks but lovastatin was more effective after the second 6 week period.