Cholesterol-Lowering Drugs Statins to Reduce Amputation, Death Risks in PAD Patients; Study Finds
ByStatins have been found to aid PAD patients in reducing the risk of amputation and death.
Statins are drugs used to lower down cholesterol levels. A study by Emory University School of Medicine (EUSM) concludes that the higher the dose, the lower the risk.
Patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) can benefit to statins medication and obtain an optimal result. Dr. Shipra Arya, lead author of the project, says that there are not many researches analyzing these drugs.
The Atlanta-based university research paper has presented an incredible finding in the disease and it is published at American Heart Association.
The research that Dr. Arya conducted, use subjects of 208,000 veterans diagnosed with PAD. For more than five years, these scientists monitored veterans' health to better understand the cholesterol-lowering drugs. They divided the veterans to three groups; the first group took higher dose of statins, the second group took moderate to low dosage, whilst the last group did not take any.
The patients who took high-dose statins were found to lower risk of death up to 29 percent, compared to the ones who did not. As patients who took moderate-dose statins, lowered their risk of death up to 22 percent compared to the counterparts, as reported by the Science Daily.
The news release also states that this research is one of the large-based studies. It suggests patients with PAD to consider placement on statins in high dose. Hence, the assistant professor suggested that patients with PAD should take statins drugs up to which their health can tolerate and be taken alongside other medications including therapies and smoking cessation.
PAD is an epidemic health problem in the States but it has not yet been fully analyzed or treated. So far, heart disease remains the focus. Thus, this research suggests optimal use of statins and is hoped to accelerate the recovery in PAD patients. Dr. Arya advised scientists to engage more with PAD researches.
