Cardiovascular Outcomes and Mortality Associated With Discontinuing Statins in Older Patients Receiving Polypharmacy

Polypharmacy is a major health concern among older adults. While deprescribing may reduce inappropriate medicine use, its effect on clinical end points remains uncertain.

To assess the clinical implications of discontinuing the use of statins while maintaining other drugs in a cohort of older patients receiving polypharmacy.

This retrospective, population-based cohort study included the 29 047 residents in the Italian Lombardy region aged 65 years or older who were receiving uninterrupted treatment with statins, blood pressure-lowering, antidiabetic, and antiplatelet agents from October 1, 2013, until January 31, 2015, with follow-up through June 30, 2018. Data were collected using the health care utilization database of Lombardy region in Italy. Data analysis was conducted from March to November 2020.

Cohort members were followed up to identify those who discontinued statins. Among this group, those who maintained other therapies during the first 6 months after statin discontinuation were 1:1 propensity score matched with patients who discontinued neither statins nor other drugs.

The pairs of patients discontinuing and maintaining statins were followed up from the initial discontinuation until June 30, 2018, to estimate the hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs for fatal and nonfatal outcomes associated with statin discontinuation.

The full cohort inclued 29 047 patients exposed to polypharmacy (mean [SD] age, 76.5 [6.5] years; 18 257 [62.9%] men). Of them, 5819 (20.0%) discontinued statins while maintaining other medications, and 4010 (68.9%) of them were matched with a comparator. In the discontinuing group, the mean (SD) age was 76.5 (6.4) years, 2405 (60.0%) were men, and 506 (12.6%) had Multisource Comorbidity Scores of 4 or 5. In the maintaining group, the mean (SD) age was 76.1 (6.3) years, 2474 (61.7%) were men, and 482 (12.0%) had multisource comorbidity scores of 4 or 5. Compared with the maintaining group, patients in the discontinuing group had increased risk of hospital admissions for heart failure (HR, 1.24; 95% CI, 1.07-1.43) and any cardiovascular outcome (HR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.03-1.26), deaths from any cause (HR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.02-1.30), and emergency admissions for any cause (HR, 1.12; 95% CI, 1.05-1.19).

In this study of patients receiving polypharmacy, discontinuing statins while maintaining other drug therapies was associated with an increase in the long-term risk of fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular outcomes.