Study Finds Low Statin Use Among Kidney Disease Patients at High Risk for Cardiovascular Disease
February 18, 2019Categories: Heart & Vascular, Nephrology
Tags: Heart Vascular, Nephrology
MAYWOOD, IL – Clinical trials have shown that cholesterol-lowering statin drugs can significantly reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in kidney disease patients who are not on dialysis.
But a new study has found that statins are used by only 21.8% of such patients who do not already have cardiovascular disease or diabetes or have not been diagnosed with high cholesterol.
The study, by researchers from Loyola Medicine, Loyola University Chicago and Hines VA Hospital, was published in Clinical Kidney Journal.
"Our findings suggest a need for education efforts to increase statin use in adults with non dialysis-dependent chronic kidney disease," reported first author Talar Markossian, PhD, MPH, corresponding author Holly Kramer, MD, MPH, and colleagues.
More than 500 million people worldwide have chronic kidney disease and are not on dialysis. Most cases are due to diabetes and high blood pressure, which also are strong risk factors for heart attacks, strokes and other forms of cardiovascular disease. The risk of cardiovascular disease increases sharply as kidney disease becomes worse.
In the new study, researchers examined records of 581,344 patients receiving care from Veterans Affairs facilities. Patients were aged 50 and older, with stages 3-5 kidney disease that did require dialysis.
About three-fourths of patients who had kidney disease plus cardiovascular disease or diabetes used statins. But in the absence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes or high cholesterol, statin use was only 21.8%. This finding is concerning because about 90 percent of such patients have at least a 10 percent risk of developing cardiovascular disease in the next 10 years, and this risk could be reduced by taking statins. Statin use also is believed to be low in patients outside the VA.
The study is titled "Low statin use in nondialysis-dependent chronic kidney disease in the absence of clinical atherosclerotic cardiovascular."
About Loyola Medicine
Loyola Medicine, a member of Trinity Health, is a nationally ranked academic, quaternary care system based in Chicago's western suburbs. The three-hospital system includes Loyola University Medical Center (LUMC), Gottlieb Memorial Hospital, MacNeal Hospital, as well as convenient locations offering primary care, specialty care and immediate care services from nearly 2,000 physicians throughout Cook, Will and DuPage counties. LUMC is a 547-licensed-bed hospital in Maywood that includes the William G. and Mary A. Ryan Center for Heart & Vascular Medicine, the Cardinal Bernardin Cancer Center, the John L. Keeley, MD, Emergency Department, a Level 1 trauma center, Illinois's largest burn center, the Nancy W. Knowles Orthopaedic Institute, a certified comprehensive stroke center, transplant center and a children’s hospital. Having delivered compassionate care for over 50 years, Loyola also trains the next generation of caregivers through its academic affiliation with Loyola University Chicago’s Stritch School of Medicine and Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing.
For more information, visit loyolamedicine.org. You can also follow Loyola Medicine on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram or X (formerly known as Twitter).
About Trinity Health
Trinity Health is one of the largest not-for-profit, faith-based health care systems in the nation. It is a family of 127,000 colleagues and more than 38,300 physicians and clinicians caring for diverse communities across 26 states. Nationally recognized for care and experience, the Trinity Health system includes 93 hospitals, 107 continuing care locations, the second largest PACE program in the country, 142 urgent care locations and many other health and well-being services. In fiscal year 2024, the Livonia, Michigan-based health system invested $1.3 billion in its communities in the form of charity care and other community benefit programs. For more information, visit us at www.trinity-health.org, or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and X (formerly known as Twitter).