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Perioperative use of statins in noncardiac surgery

Y C Chan1, S W Cheng, M G Irwin

  • 1Division of Vascular Surgery, University of Hong Kong Medical Centre, Queen Mary Hospital, Hong Kong, China. ycchan88@hkucc.hku.hk

Vascular Health and Risk Management
|July 17, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Perioperative statin therapy significantly reduces cardiovascular complications in surgical patients. These cholesterol-lowering drugs offer cardiovascular protection, even in individuals without high cholesterol, suggesting broader benefits.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • Pharmacology
  • Surgical Medicine

Background:

  • Statins (3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitors) are known for reducing cardiovascular mortality and morbidity.
  • Their benefits extend beyond cholesterol reduction, irrespective of baseline cholesterol levels.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the effects of perioperative statin therapy.
  • To assess the impact on patients undergoing noncardiac surgery.

Main Methods:

  • A systematic literature review was conducted.
  • Searches included Medline and cross-referenced databases for relevant published papers.

Main Results:

  • Perioperative statin therapy is linked to reduced morbidity and mortality in both elective and emergency surgery.
  • These protective effects stem from both lipid-lowering and pleiotropic actions of statins.

Conclusions:

  • Evidence strongly suggests perioperative statins offer cardiovascular protection during surgery.
  • Despite evidence, statins may be under-prescribed in surgical patients.
  • A large-scale randomized controlled trial is ideally needed but may be challenging due to existing evidence.
Abstract

Keywords:
morbidity, mortalitynoncardiac surgeryoutcomeperioperative, cardiac complicationsstatinsvascular

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