[Ezetimibe (Ezetrol)]

Ezetimibe (Ezetrol), recently launched in Belgium by Merck Sharp& Dohme and Schering Plough, is presented as 10 mg tablets. It belongs to a new class of lipid-lowering agents that selectively inhibit the intestinal absorption of cholesterol and phytosterols. Its mechanism of action results in a synergistic cholesterol-lowering effect together with a statin that inhibits cholesterol synthesis by the liver. Ezetimibe, at a daily dose of 10 mg, is indicated, in combination with a statin, as adjuvant treatment to diet in patients with primary hypercholesterolaemia (homozygote or heterozygote familial form and non-familial polygenic form) not well controlled with a statin alone. In case of statin contra-indication or intolerance, ezetimibe can be used in monotherapy. Its tolerance profile is excellent. Statin-ezetimibe combination allows to significantly reduce total and LDL cholesterol levels and increases the percentage of hypercholesterolaemic patients who will reach the target levels recommended in the international guidelines against atherosclerosis. However, such a combination should still prove its efficacy in reducing cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in large prospective clinical trials.