Rosuvastatin improves dyslipidaemia in patients with metabolic syndrome
According to results from the largest study yet to investigate statin treatment for patients suffering from metabolic syndrome, the HMG CoA reductase inhibitor, rosuvastatin (Crestor), significantly improves all lipid abnormalities associated with the atherogenic dyslipidaemia seen in these patients.
The study assessed changes in cholesterol and triglycerides in a sub-group
of 811 patients with metabolic syndrome — a clustering of risk
factors increasing the likelihood of type 2 diabetes and heart disease — from
the total of more than 2,000 patients taking part in the STELLAR (statin
therapies for elevated lipid levels compared across doses to rosuvastatin)
study.
The subgroup had three or more risk factors associated with metabolic
syndrome — abdominal obesity, raised triglycerides, low high-density
lipoprotein-cholesterol, high blood pressure and elevated fasting glucose,
in addition to high low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol. Patients were
randomised to treatment for six weeks with any of the currently licensed
doses of rosuvastatin, atorvastatin, simvastatin or pravastatin.
Results presented at the American College of Cardiology meeting held
in New Orleans this week showed that LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol
and triglycerides were changed favourably by rosuvastatin.
Rosuvastatin (10–40mg) reduced LDL-cholesterol by 44–55 per cent
compared with 37–50 per cent with atorvastatin (10–80mg), 28–47
per cent with simvastatin (10–80mg) and 20–29 per cent with pravastatin
(10– 40mg). Triglycerides were reduced by 22–34 per cent with rosuvastatin
(10–40mg) and HDL-cholesterol was increased by 7.6–11.1 per cent
with rosuvastatin, 4.7–9.4 per cent with atorvastatin, 8.0–10.0 per
cent with simvastatin and 3.3–6.9 per cent with pravastatin. |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal