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Updated: Jul 1, 2025

Differential Effects of Lipid-lowering Drugs in Modulating Morphology of Cholesterol Particles
Published on: November 10, 2017
[For which patients do the latest lipid lowering treatments reduce cardiovascular events?]
Julia Bianca Bardoczi1,2, Michael Rossen1,2, Nadia Eugster1,2
1Institut universitaire de médecine de famille (BIHAM), Université de Berne, 3012 Berne.
Insights
Adding a second lipid-lowering treatment offers significant cardiovascular risk reduction only for very high and high-risk patients. Moderate and low-risk individuals see minimal absolute benefit from intensified therapy.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Pharmacology
Context:
- Dyslipidemia is a key modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVD).
- Current guidelines emphasize LDL-C target levels for managing dyslipidemia.
- Assessing the absolute cardiovascular risk reduction is crucial for intensifying lipid-lowering therapy.
Purpose:
- To evaluate the absolute benefits of intensifying lipid-lowering therapy beyond statins.
- To determine the effectiveness of adding second-line lipid-lowering treatments across different cardiovascular risk strata.
Summary:
- A recent analysis indicates that adding a second lipid-lowering treatment provides substantial absolute cardiovascular risk reduction primarily in very high and high cardiovascular risk patients.
- Patients at moderate or low cardiovascular risk do not experience significant absolute benefit from intensified lipid-lowering strategies.
- This finding contrasts with the focus on LDL-C targets and highlights the importance of absolute risk assessment.
Impact:
- Informs clinical decision-making regarding the intensification of lipid-lowering therapy.
- Supports personalized treatment approaches based on individual cardiovascular risk.
- Highlights the need for evidence on absolute risk reduction for newer lipid-lowering agents.
Abstract:
Dyslipidemia is a modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. Recommendations are based on achieving LDL-C target levels, but it is essential to assess the benefits of intensifying lipid-lowering therapy in terms of absolute risk reduction of cardiovascular events across different risk groups. Current data on the absolute benefits of the latest lipid-lowering treatments are more limited in comparison with statins. A recent analysis showed that adding a second lipid-lowering treatment only reduces the absolute cardiovascular risk in patients at very high and high cardiovascular risk, without a substantial benefit in patients at moderate or low cardiovascular risk, as mentioned in the recent recommendations free of conflict of interest and published in the British Medical Journal.
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