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Home > Press Center > Statins Reduce Vascular Events in Peripheral Arterial Disease Cases

Contact:
Jill Goodwin
Director of Communications
312-334-2308

A study presented at the 60th Annual Meeting of the Society for Vascular Surgery, indicates that patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD), which is a narrowing of the arteries outside of the heart and brain) should take statins. 

The research, completed by researches at Clinical Trial Service Unit others from the clinical trial service unit at the University of Oxford, United Kingdom, showed the positive impact of statins on major vascular events including myocardial infarction, coronary death, stroke or revascularization. The study also allowed researchers to assess peripheral vascular events including peripheral revasculation, aneurysm repairs, major amputations or PAD deaths.

Patients from the Medical Research Council/British Heart Foundation Heart Protection Study (HPS), which is the world’s largest randomized controlled trial of cholesterol-lowering therapy were analyzed. Volunteers who participated in HPS were between 40 and 80 years old. A total of 6,748 adults with PAD and 13,788 other high risk conditions were randomly allocated to receive 40 mg Simvastatin daily or a matching placebo, yielding an average LDL cholesterol different of 1.0 mmol/L (39 mg/dL) during a five-year treatment and follow-up period in 69 hospitals.

The PAD patients had a 22 percent relative reduction rate of vascular events. Overall, among all participants, Simvastain produced around 15 percent relative reduction in the rate of major peripheral vascular events, irrespective of baseline LDL, cholesterol and other factors. The effect chiefly reflects as 20 percent relative reduction in peripheral revascularization procedures.

Dr. Richard Bulbulia, lead author of the study, said that before the HPS, there was little evidence of benefit with cholesterol lowering therapy in PAD patients. “We now know this therapy benefits them regardless of initial cholesterol levels and other presenting features,” said Dr. Bulbulia. “Allocation of 40 mg Simvastatin daily reduced the rate of first major vascular events (heart attacks and strokes) by about one-quarter and lessened major peripheral vascular events by about one-sixth, which which includes need for leg artery bypass surgery, angioplasties and amputations. Statin therapy should be considered for all patients with PAD.”

The importance of large randomized studies like these help to get reliable results about moderate treatment effects by having large-scale randomize evidence. “Large numbers help researchers to avoid being misled by chance and proper randomization avoids any biases,” added Dr. Louise Bowman, HPS investigator