WEDNESDAY, Sept. 3 (HealthDay News) -- Taking a
cholesterol-lowering drug after a stroke or mini-stroke reduces an
older person's risk of another stroke much as it does in younger
patients, according to a U.S. study.
"Even though the majority of strokes and heart attacks occur in people who are 65 and older, studies have found that cholesterol-lowering drugs are not prescribed as often for older people as they are for younger people. These results show that using these drugs is just as beneficial for people who are 65 as they are for younger people," study author Dr. Seemant Chaturvedi, of Wayne State University in Detroit, said in an American Academy of Neurology news release.
The researchers looked at 4,731 people who had had a recent
stroke or mini-stroke (transient ischemic attack), including 2,249
people age 65 and older and 2,482 people under age 65. In each
group, about half the patients received the cholesterol-lowering
drug atorvastatin (Lipitor), and about half received a placebo. The
participants were then followed for an average of 4.5 years.
Levels of "bad" low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol were
reduced by an average of 61 points in the over-65 group and by an
average of 59 point in the under-65 group. Stroke risk was reduced
by 26 percent in the younger group and by 10 percent in the older
group, the study found.
"We tested to see whether age had any effect on how well the treatment worked, and we did not find any differences between young people and older people," Chaturvedi said. "It's estimated that 20 percent of the U.S. population will be 65 or older by 2010, so it's important that we identify ways to reduce the burden of strokes and other cerebrovascular diseases in this group. This is a step in that direction."
The study, which was supported by atorvastatin maker Pfizer
Inc., was published in the Sept. 3 online issue of the journal
Neurology.
More information
The U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
has more about
stroke.
