Most statins prescribed in the UK go to the wrong patients, study finds

Fewer than half the patients who are started on a statin by their general practitioner in the United Kingdom are at high risk of heart disease and eligible for treatment under current guidelines, a study has found.

The research, published online in PLoS One, found that over a two year period only about one in three patients who should be taking statins were prescribed them but meanwhile the drugs were prescribed inappropriately to one in 10 low risk patients.1

The …