Statins boost by-pass success - study
Monday June 1st, 2015
Patients who are taking cholesterol-lowering statins before undergoing a heart by-pass enjoy a significantly reduced risk of dying, a European conference has heard.
The study of 16,000 British patients found that statins were the only heart-related drug linked to the chances of surviving the operation.
Reporting to the conference of the European Society of Anaesthiology in Berlin, Germany, the researchers say patients on statins had a 65 to 74% reduced risk of dying compared with other patients.
The research was undertaken by Dr Robert Sanders, of the University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA, and Drs Puja Myles and Sudhir Venkatesan, of the University of Nottingham, UK.
The researchers say other studies have suggested benefits from statins in surgery.
They say: "In combination with previous studies, these data suggest that patients not taking statins should be considered for statin therapy based on their perioperative and chronic health risks. Consistent evidence of benefit or harm of the other drugs was not observed.
"Further data on the relative benefits of individual statin drugs are required - however this study suggests that at least simvastatin offers protection."
Tags: Europe | Heart Health | North America | Pharmaceuticals | UK News
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