Cardiologia Croatica, Vol. 11 No. 7, 2016.
Professional paper
https://doi.org/10.15836/ccar2016.296
Are we giving up on adequate statin doses too easily?
Jasna Čerkez Habek
; University Hospital "Sveti Duh”, Zagreb, Croatia
Abstract
Coronary heart disease is the leading cause of mortality in developed countries, and hypercholesterolemia is one of the significant risk factors for the development of atherosclerosis. Attempts to reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events necessitate efficient lowering of LDL cholesterol concentrations, especially since this is a risk factor that we can significantly modify through treatment. Statins are basic drugs for the primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases, and their activity leads to a reduction in plasma levels of total and LDL cholesterol, but other numerous effects of statins beyond just the reduction of cholesterol levels contribute to atheroma stabilization and slowing down the process of atherosclerosis. It is the metabolic effect of statins that explains the possible etiology of myopathy, which is a relatively common patient complaint leading to reduction in dosage or treatment termination, which once again exposes the patient to increased risk of the development of unwanted cardiovascular events. Thus, the current knowledge on the etiology and treatment of this side effect is also addressed in this article.
Keywords
statins; pleiotropic effect; prevention of cardiovascular diseases; myopathies
Hrčak ID:
161135
URI
Publication date:
30.6.2016.
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