TITLE:
Discontinuation of Statin Treatment in Relation to Chronic Diseases and Laboratory Findings
AUTHORS:
Leo Niskanen, Janne Suvisaari, Jaana Suvisaari, Anna But, Jari Haukka
KEYWORDS:
Statins; Adverse Effects; Discontinuation
JOURNAL NAME:
Pharmacology & Pharmacy,
Vol.4 No.3,
June
20,
2013
ABSTRACT: Purpose: The aim was to study
discontinuation of statin treatment, especially with respect to clinical
characteristics and adverse effect measured by clinical laboratory tests indicating muscle
damage (plasma creatine kinase, CK) and liver AEs (plasma alanine aminotransferase,
ALAT). Methods: The initial study population included 60,488 individuals who had
purchased first time statin prescription in Helsinki-Uusimaa region between
01-01-2007 and 31-12-2009. The follow-up started when first statin prescription was purchased and ended
31-12-2009 or death, which ever occurred first. From this population 54,172
individuals were defined to eligible to study population of this study. Clinical laboratory
measurements were obtained from Helsinki-Uusimaa University Hospital (HUSLAB)
that which provides the laboratory tests for the Helsinki-Uusimaa region serving about a population
of 1.5 million. Results: In this fairly large real-life study the occurrence of ALAT-AE and
mild CK-elevations after initiation of first statin treatments were relatively low. Increasing
age and the presence of co-morbidities increased the risk of these AEs.
Further, the ALAT-AEs implied increased risk of discontinuation of treatment.
Diabetic patients discontinued treatment more often than non-diabetics, whereas the
presence of other chronic conditions implied higher persistence of statin treatment. Conclusions: It is essential that those who would benefit from statin therapy
actually are treated and by far in most patients treatment seems to be safe and
well tolerated. For those who cannot tolerate statins new therapeutic options
are needed.