Risk of Clots Reduced by Cholesterol Drugs

This past November, researchers conducting the Jupiter study found that statins lowered the risk of heart attack, stroke, angioplasty, bypass surgery and death. More recent results from the study suggest that these statins, which are usually used to lower cholesterol, may reduce the risk of blood clots. Clots frequently develop in the veins of the legs and can make their way to the lungs, blocking blood vessels and causing pulmonary embolism, which can lead to difficulty breathing and even death, depending on the size of the blockage. The Jupiter study, which was led by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH) in Boston, looked at the effect of statins on 17,802 people that did not have high cholesterol or a history of heart disease. Male participants were age 50 and older, while female participants were age 60 and older. Researchers, led by Dr. Paul M. Ridker of the Center for Cardiovascular Disease at BWH, randomly administered either a potent statin or a placebo to each of the participants. While only 94 study participants developed a clot, 60 of those were in the placebo group and only 34 were in the group taking the statin. These rather healthy people taking the cholesterol drug had a 43 percent lower risk of developing a blood clot than those taking the placebo, making it apparent that statins can improve more than just cholesterol levels.

The results of the Juniper study, which was presented at an American College of Cardiology convention and is published on The New England Journal of Medicine website, should have a strong influence in the decision of national medical panels to broaden their recommendations on who should be prescribed a statin. Crestor, the statin used in the study, is the most potent on the market and does come with side effects, including kidney problems and muscle deterioration. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), each year nearly 600,000 people get venous clots and at least 100,000 die from those clots in the U.S. A person’s risk of developing one of these clots increases as they get older and is higher for people that are overweight, inactive or have genetic abnormalities. If you or a loved one has been harmed as a result of a missed diagnosis or failure to treat a blood clot, call or e-mail the experienced attorneys at Silberstein, Awad & Miklos, P.C. today for your free consultation. We serve clients with Bronx medical malpractice, Queens medical malpractice, Brooklyn medical malpractice, Long Island medical malpractice and Manhattan medical malpractice cases.

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