High intensity statins are associated with greatest reduction in mortality

Patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease who received the highest intensity statin treatment showed the greatest reductions in mortality, data from more than half a million patients have shown.1

The retrospective cohort analysis published in JAMA Cardiology showed that high intensity statins were associated with a small but significant survival advantage compared with moderate intensity statins, including among patients over 75 years.

The researchers examined one year cardiovascular mortality by intensity of statin therapy among 509 766 adults with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease treated in the Veterans Affairs healthcare system. The average age of the patients was …