April 8, 2016 - Curant President and CEO, Patrick Dunham, featured in Managed Healthcare Executive - Statin intolerance does exist and a PCSK9 inhibitor can lower cholesterol in these patients, according to a study published online in JAMA and presented at the American College of Cardiology's 65th Annual Scientific Session in Chicago.
In the first major trial of its kind, Cleveland Clinic researchers used a blinded rechallenge with atorvastatin or placebo to objectively confirm the presence of muscle-related symptoms in patients with a history of intolerance to multiple statins and found that injectable PCSK9 inhibitor evolocumab (Repatha) was a more effective option to lower cholesterol than ezetimibe in these patients. [...] The clinical takeaway for managed care executives? Proceed with caution, according to Curant Health CEO Patrick Dunham.
“High LDL is a surrogate marker for cardiovascular events,” Dunham says. “Therefore, on the surface it would appear that a drug class shown to lower LDL levels would benefit patients with high cholesterol by reducing the rate of negative cardiovascular events.”
However, he says that while PSK9 inhibitors show great promise, the referenced study did not show direct causation between taking evolocumab and a lower rate of negative cardiovascular events.
To read the full article, visit Managed Healthcare Executive.
To learn more about Curant Health, contact Kristin Lindsey, Marketing Director, at klindsey@curanthealth.com.