November 12, 2008
Crestor Shows Wider Heart Benefit
A U.S. study suggests the cholesterol drug rosuvastatin reduced heart attacks and strokes in patients with elevated C-reactive protein levels.
The lipid-lowering statin, marketed as Crestor, reduced heart attacks by 54 percent in people who had normal cholesterol but elevated levels of high sensitivity C-reactive protein, researchers said Sunday at a meeting of the American Heart Association.
The report was also published in the New England Journal of Medicine."Compared to those who received placebo, patients receiving the drug rosuvastatin also had a 48 percent reduction in stroke, a 46 percent reduction in the need for interventions to reopen blocked blood vessels and a 20 percent drop in all-cause mortality," Dr. Paul M. Ridker, director of the Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, said in a statement.
The American Heart Association said it was unclear if the drug's benefit resulted from cholesterol levels or reduced inflammation marked by high sensitivity C-reactive protein levels.