(HealthDay)—Drugs known as statins may have benefits beyond lowering “bad” LDL cholesterol levels. A new study suggests people with chronic lung disease who take these drugs may extend their survival. The study from Canada included nearly 40,000 people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). One in five patients was taking a statin, and those individuals had a...
Tag: <span>statins</span>
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Statins may raise the risk of Parkinson’s disease
Thousands of people across the United States are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease every year. New research examines the effect of statins on the risk of developing this neurodegenerative disease. Every year, approximately 50,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) estimate that half a million people in the country live...
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Statins beneficial for the heart, beyond just lowering cholesterol
New research has revealed that in addition to lowering cholesterol, statins may have improve heart structure and function In recent years, statins have come under fire with indications side-effects from these drugs could potentially outweigh any benefits in low-risk patients. While several follow up studies showed the negative side-effects of statins to be relatively minimal compared to...
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Stem cell drug screen yields potential alternative to statins
IMAGE: THIS IS AN ILLUSTRATION FEATURING FOXGLOVE, THE PLANT FROM WHICH CARDIAC GLYCOSIDES ARE DERIVED. Scientists at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) have found that a class of heart failure drugs might decrease low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels in patients who do not respond to statins. In a study appearing in the April...
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The cholesterol drug that outperforms statins: Patients on the medication are ‘27% less likely to suffer a heart attack’, landmark trial shows
Patients were treated with the injectable drug Repatha as part of a two-year trial Bad cholesterol levels dropped by 60% more than those who were just on statins Experts say the ‘extremely potent’ drug could potentially save thousands of lives A powerful cholesterol drug cuts the risk of heart attacks by a quarter, a landmark...