March 6, 2023 – A brand new study suggests that taking a drug called bempedoic acid could also be more tolerable for individuals who don't take conventional cholesterol medications due to unintended effects resembling muscle pain, while still providing significant protection for his or her hearts.
The results showed that taking bempedoic acid reduced low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels of cholesterol by 21% inside 6 months and reduced the chance of heart attack by 23%. LDL is the “bad” cholesterol that may construct up in your arteries and result in heart attacks, strokes, and other problems.
The drug also reduced the combined risk of the next events by 13%: heart attack, stroke, need for treatment for a blocked artery, or death from heart or blood vessel disease.
The study was conducted by the Cleveland Clinic and funded by drugmaker Esperion Therapeutics, which sells bempedoic acid under the brand name Nexletol. Bempedoic acid is already approved by the FDA, but this study could help get the treatment covered by insurance. The New York Timesreported.
However, people who find themselves already taking cholesterol-lowering drugs, so-called statins, should proceed to accomplish that, advises study leader Dr. Steven E. Nissen of the Cleveland Clinic.
“Most people can take statins, but some cannot,” he said in a opinion“This is the first study to directly address the problem of patients with statin intolerance. We have achieved what we hoped for – a very positive result in a population of people who simply cannot tolerate statins.”
The results were published on Saturday in The New England Journal of Medicine. They were also presented on the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology in New Orleans. The study compared the effect of taking bempedoic acid with that of a placebo in 14,000 individuals who couldn't or didn't wish to take statins because of unintended effects but who had or were prone to heart disease. The study lasted just over three years.
More than 1 in 10 people within the United States have high cholesterol, which is a risk factor for heart disease, based on the CDCIn 2021, nearly 700,000 people within the United States died from heart disease, making it the leading reason for death within the country.
Although bempedoic acid isn't as effective as statins, study results offer a brand new option for individuals who prefer to not take treatment altogether. 29% of people that should take a statin are unwilling or unable to accomplish that because they can't tolerate unintended effects resembling muscle pain.
Statins are twice as effective as bempedoic acid at regulating levels of cholesterol. They are so a lot better than bempedoic acid or other alternatives that individuals who've stopped taking statins should consider starting them again, experts say.
“However, it is premature to consider bempedoic acid as an alternative to statins,” said Dr. John H. Alexander in a editorial published in parallel with the study. “Given the overwhelming evidence of the vascular benefits of statins, clinicians should continue their efforts to prescribe them at the maximum tolerated dose to appropriate patients, including those who have stopped taking statins due to suspected side effects.”