BACKGROUND Seven percent of acute hospital admissions result from adverse drug reactions, of which 25% are due to drug interactions. Adverse effects of statin drugs occur in 3% of patients, mainly due to co-prescribing with other lipid-lowering agents or agents that alter their metabolism. AIM The aim of this study was to investigate co-prescribing of the frequently-used statin medications wi...

INTRODUCTION Statins reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events by about 25-35% compared with placebos, both in patients with and without clinical atheroslcerotic disease, across a wide range of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels. All the landmark statin mega-trials provide solid evidence for reducing LDL-C as a primary target, yet these studies also show that up to 65-75% of...

BACKGROUND Aspirin and statins are both effective for primary prevention of coronary heart disease (CHD), but their combined use has not been well studied. OBJECTIVE To perform a cost-utility analysis of the effects of aspirin therapy, statin therapy, combination therapy with both drugs, and no pharmacotherapy for the primary prevention of CHD events in men. DESIGN Markov model. DATA SOUR...

OBJECTIVE To estimate rates of non-adherence for statins following implementation of a preferred drug list (PDL). STUDY DESIGN A retrospective cohort study. METHODS A difference-in-difference-in-difference approach was used to estimate the impact of a PDL on the use of statins in an Alabama Medicaid population. The PDL restricted access to certain branded medications and imposed a monthly p...

BACKGROUND In Belgium, regulations restrict the reimbursement of statins to patients with total serum cholesterol above 250 mg/dl (6.41 mmol/l) after a three-month lipid-lowering diet. We investigated the possible impact of these regulations on characteristics of Belgian patients receiving a lipid-lowering drug. DESIGN From 1998 to 2000, standard questionnaires on coronary risk factors and tr...

BACKGROUND Statins are widely used cholesterol-lowering drugs that act by inhibiting HMGCoA reductase, the rate-limiting enzyme in cholesterol biosynthesis. Recent evidence suggests that statin use may be associated with a decreased risk for Alzheimer disease, although the mechanisms underlying this apparent risk reduction are poorly understood. One popular hypothesis for statin action is relat...

■ ■ Preliminary evidence indicates that statin drugs may be beneficial when given in the perioperative period. Although more studies are needed to draw firm conclusions, the acute nonlipid pleiotropic effects of statins may improve patient outcomes, especially for patients at the highest risk.

Statins are currently the most effective drugs in reducing low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C). With their mechanism of action, by inhibiting 3-hydroxy-3 methylglutharyl coenzyme A reductase, statins decrease cholesterol production. The same biosynthetic pathway is shared by ubiquinone or coenzyme Q10. Statins block production of dekaprenyl-4-benzoate, a precursor of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10...