Red yeast rice comparable to pravastatin

/METABOLIC

Red yeast rice comparable to pravastatin for statin-intolerant patients

JANUARY 21, 2010 | Michael O'Riordan

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Philadelphia, PA - Red-yeast-rice extract is as well tolerated as pravastatin in patients who previously developed a statin-associated myalgia and withdrew from therapy, research shows [1]. Withdrawals from the red-yeast-rice and pravastatin treatment arms were low; and both groups achieved comparable reductions in LDL-cholesterol levels, report researchers.

"Statin-associated myalgia is an important clinical problem that will likely become more prevalent owing to the ever-expanding indications for statin use," write lead author Dr Steven Halbert (University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA) and colleagues in the January 15, 2010 issue of theAmerican Journal of Cardiology. "Although no definitive conclusions could be drawn, our data showed that red yeast rice was as well tolerated as pravastatin and achieved clinically significant levels of LDL-cholesterol reduction in a population with previous statin intolerance."/.../