How Low Should LDL Go?

Reducing LDL cholesterol to very low levels is safe and reduces major vascular events, according to a meta-analysis.

The safety and effectiveness of lowering LDL cholesterol to very low levels are still disputed. To answer this question, investigators used data from the meta-analysis of 26 statin trials by the Cholesterol Treatment Trialists' Collaboration (Lancet 2010; 378:1670) to focus on patients with baseline LDL levels under 70 mg/dL. The investigators added to the analysis three trials of nonstatin LDL cholesterol lowering agents (ezetimibe, proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 [PCSK9] inhibitors, and anacetrapib), added to statin treatment.

In participants receiving statins, each 38.7 mg/dL reduction in LDL was associated with a reduction of major vascular events (coronary heart death, myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, or coronary re…

Reviewing Author

Fatima Rodriguez, MD, MPH

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardNovoNordisk; HealthPals; Novartis; Amgen

EquityHealthPals; Carta

Grant/Research SupportNational Institutes of Health/National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; American Heart Association–Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

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