Statins safe and effective for children
Atherosclerosis in children with familial hypercholesterolaemia can be safely and effectively reversed with statin treatment, a new study has confirmed.
Dutch researchers conducted a placebo-controlled trial to examine the
effects of pravastatin therapy in 214 children with the inherited condition.
After two years they found that levels of low-density lipoprotein were
reduced by an average of 24.1 per cent in children treated with pravastatin
(20mg to 40mg). This compared with an average 0.3 per cent increase for
children given placebo. Carotid artery thickness had also regressed in
children given active treatment. These benefits were achieved with no
apparent adverse effects on growth, sexual maturation, hormone levels,
or liver and muscle tissue.
“We were able to show that statin treatment improved the lipoprotein
profile toward more physiological levels and we observed regression of
carotid
intima-media thickness,” the authors conclude. “This shows
that the increased arterial wall thickness progression found in children
with familial hypercholesterolaemia is reversible.” (JAMA 2004;292:331.)
In an accompanying editorial (ibid, p377), Antonio Gotto, Cornell University,
New York, says that drug therapy may be needed in most children with
the condition. “The promise of reducing future cardiovascular morbidity
and mortality, as well as future demands on acute care and more expensive
preventive approaches, would make aggressive treatment of high-risk young
patients a worthwhile long-term initiative. Appropriate targeting of
lifestyle and drug therapies will optimise primary prevention in this
group at demonstrated risk for early disease.” |
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Pharmaceutical Journal
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