New research highlights the risk associated with statin use in the elderly, and suggest physicians should carefully weigh the pros and cons when prescribing these drugs.
Statins are used by about half of the elderly population in the U.S., but there has been little study of the potential risks of these blood cholesterol drugs, the University of California, San Francisco reported.
A recent study used a computer simulation model to assess whether or not statins should be routinely prescribed to adults over the age of 75 to prevent heart disease. The found the drugs showed "tremendous" potential health benefits and significantly reduced heart attack risk, but also could come with serious consequences such as muscle pain and mild cognitive decline.
"There's been a lot of uncertainty over the use of statins in older adults," said senior author Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, , a professor of medicine, epidemiology and biostatistics at UCSF. "Prior studies have favored statin use because of the clear benefits to the heart and because serious side effects are rare. Unfortunately, we don't have enough studies in older adults, and as a result don't know enough about how common or how severe the side effects are. Our study showed that in older adults, even small increases in functional limitations and mild cognitive impairments from statin use could result in net harm."
Patients considering a statin regimen usually discuss the potential benefits and risks with their physician, this new study aimed to provide more precise data on the balance between these postive and negative factors. The findings were based on simulations including all U.S. adults between the ages of 75 and 94 years old, from 2014 through 2023.
The researchers estimated that if all adults in this group without cardiovascular disease took statins over the next decade, 105,000 heart attacks and 68,000 deaths would be prevented. On the other hand these benefits would be offset by a 10 to 30 percent increased list of "cognitive impairments and functional limits."
The findings were published in a recent edition of the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.
