Heart Group: Statins' Benefits "Greatly Outweigh" Their Risks

By Amy Orciari Herman

Edited by Susan Sadoughi, MD, and André Sofair, MD, MPH

For most patients who meet criteria for statin therapy, the benefits "greatly outweigh" the risks, according to a new scientific statement from the American Heart Association.

Here are some of the group's conclusions, published in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology:

• Statins prevent primary cardiovascular events in 5% of patients treated for 5 years (who achieve a 77-mg/dL reduction in LDL) and prevent secondary events in 10% of those treated.

• Myopathy, including rhabdomyolysis, owing to statin use affects less than 0.1% of treated patients.

• Severe liver toxicity occurs roughly 0.001% of the time.

• Statins "modestly" increase the risk for diabetes, most often in patients with numerous other risk factors.

The absolute risks for additional adverse effects are listed in Table 7 of the document linked below.