THE MURKY SIDE OF STATINS page2
POSITION 0F THE AHA
The American Heart Association (AHA) issued a commentary reminding "patients that controlling cholesterol is critical for preventing coronary heart disease and reducing heart attack. People who experience myoapathy with statins should seek other alternatives.”
THE PLAYERS BEHIND THE SCENE
A clinical trial on which the FDA approved the drug, only looked at people who had low cholesterol and a positive test, called C. reactive protein (CRP).
The inventor of the test, Dr. Ridker from Harvard, persuaded the drug company to pay for this study He tried to get the National Institutes of Health and two other companies (Pfizer and Bayer) to do the study, but was turned down. He chose the candidates for the study, led the study, and wrote the conclusions of the study.
The company making Crestor, AstraZeneca, made four and one half billion dollars on this drug last year. There will be no generics for this product, and the drug is protected for many years. Compared to taking generic statins for a few pennies, the drug sells for $3.50 a day.
Incidentally, Dr. Ridker, receives royalties from his CRP test and everyone taking this statin will require his test on a regular basis.
COMMENTARY
Many patients complain of muscle aches and pains, weakness, memory problems, cognitive difficulties, and transient global amnesia from taking statins.
Doctors regularly will check your liver and at times it will have high enzymes. They will tell you even though your liver tests are off, the benefits of lowering your bad cholesterol and reducing your risk of heart disease offset the thought of quitting the drug.
Over the past 10 years, there is a steady expansion of people who are statin candidates. Various advisory panels have recommended these new cholesterol guidelines. Many are paid consultants for the drug industry. Many experts also receive research and honorary grants, consulting work, speakers’ fees, and serve on safety and monitoring boards of drug companies. These financial benefits play a role in many of their analyses.
The health benefits of statins in the very healthy are very misleading. They have very little risk factors to begin with. To claim that taking this drug will lower their risk of a heart attack by 40% is hard to accept. This statistic is clinically not significant.
Five hundred people would have to take this statin for a year to avoid one usually survivable heart attack, and many would experience the higher risk of side effects with this drug.
500 people taking this drug at $3.50 a pill, will cost $650,000 to prevent one heart attack each year. This does not include the regular costs for Dr.Rikers CPA test. Apparently the drug company. Dr Riker, and the FDA believe it is worth it. Others like myself disagree.
The big point is with any treatments, benefits should outweigh the risks. Statins in the healthy will turn a lot of healthy people like you, into patients, and commit you to a lifetime of medication.
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