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Wednesday 21 August 2013

The Ugly Side of Statins. Systemic Appraisal of the Contemporary Un-Known Unknowns

Cardio-vascular specialists have witnessed and actively participated in the revolutionary developments that have occurred in their field of specialization over the last few years. Cutting-edge technologies have led to dramatic improvements in life-expectancy and quality of life. An open-mind and pioneering attitude are necessary when exploring new frontiers to improve our patients’ health. However, naive indiscriminate acceptance of novel mainstream therapies is not always advisable and prudence is required in unearthing harmful, covert side effects. An objective review of contemporary vascular research was performed and industrial bias was sifted out for a fresh prospective on how to promote primary cardiovascular prevention with attainable lifestyle adjustments [1]. A comprehensive review of Pubmed, EM-BASE and Cochrane review databases was undertaken for articles relating to cardiovascular primary prevention and statin side effects with the aim of harmonising their roles within contemporary clinic practice. Particular attention was paid to large-scale randomised controlled trials on contemporary cardiovascular pharmacotherapies and their specific adverse effects on metabolic pathways which feature prominently in cardiovascular primary prevention and regenerative programmes. There is a categorical lack of clinical evidence to support the use of statin therapy in primary prevention. Not only is there a dearth of evidence for primary cardiovascular protection, there is ample evidence to show that statins actually augment cardiovascular risk in women, patients with Diabetes Mellitus and in the young. Furthermore statins are associated with triple the risk of coronary artery and aortic artery calcification. Cardiovascular primary prevention and regeneration programmes, through life style changes and abstaining from tobacco use have enhanced clinical efficacy and quality of life over any pharmaceutical or other conventional intervention.

 The PDF can be downloaded here:
Consultant vascular and endovascular surgeons at University Hospital Galway, Sherif Sultan and Niamh Hynes carried out the research.

The consultants' paper, called 'The Ugly Side of Statins' is published in the Journal of Endocrine and Metabolic Diseases.

The research states that statins, which are one of the world's most prescribed drugs, could increase the risk of diabetes and cataracts in young people.

It says the drugs can also cause an increased risk of cancer in elderly people.

They add that there has 'actually been active discouragement to publish any negative studies on statins', which is a 20-billion a year industry.


http://www.connachttribune.ie/breaking-news/23954-galway-surgeons-claim-drugs-to-prevent-stroke-increase-risk

Graham

1 comment:

Unknown said...

SLCO1B1 Genotype Predicts Ability to Metabolize Statins
Three SLCO1B1 genotypes have been identified and classified in terms of their effect on statin metabolism in the liver—normal (T/T), heterozygote (T/C), and homozygote(C/C):
The T/T genotype (valine/valine) is classified as normal. These patients have a normal ability to metabolize statins (about 70% of the population). Standard doses of statins are recommended for LDL-C lowering and CVD risk reduction.
The T/C genotype (valine/alanine) is classified as an intermediate metabolizer. These patients have a decreased ability to metabolize statins (about 26% of the population). They are at a four-fold increased risk for developing statin induced myopathy. They also achieve less LDL-C lowering from the statin that they receive.
The C/C genotype (alanine/alanine) is classified as a poor metabolizer. These patients have a significantly decreased ability to metabolize statins (up to 5% of the population). They are at a seventeen-fold increased risk of developing myopathy on statin therapy.
Additionally, individuals carrying the T/C or C/C genotype are less responsive to statins for LDL-C lowering than those carrying the T/T genotype. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3417133/

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.105 /NEJMoa0801936#t=articleMethods

http://www.nature.com/tpj/journal/v12/n3/full/tpj201092a.html28