MAY 19, 2011 |
Charlottesville, VA - Whereas statins appeared to halt atherosclerosis, ezetimibe (Zetia, Merck/Schering-Plough) was associated with an increase in plaque volume in peripheral arterial disease (PAD) patients in a new study [1].
The findings add to other similar results from the ENHANCE and ARBITER-6 studies, suggesting that although ezetimibe effectively lowers LDL it does not seem to have a favorable effect on atherosclerosis.
Senior author Dr Christopher Kramer (University of Virginia Health System, Charlottesville, VA) commented toheartwire: "While our results are by no means conclusive, they do add some fuel to the fire regarding the controversy over ezetimibe and the lack of benefit on atherosclerosis seen in imaging studies. Clearly, ezetimibe is not as beneficial as a statin in this regard, despite effectively lowering LDL. This is the third study to have shown this."
But Dr Steven Nissen (Cleveland Clinic Foundation, OH) said the study had too many limitations to draw any definite conclusions. He commented to heartwire: "While I remain skeptical about the benefits of ezetimibe, it is important to recognize that this study has major limitations. The study was small and used MRI to measure plaque, a largely untested method."/.../
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