Statins side effects: Scientists determine the risk profile for developing myopathy

Statins: How the drug prevents heart attacks and strokes

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The NHS explained myopathy is when the tissues in the muscle become damaged. It’s a painful complication of taking statins, which is more likely to affect a particular subset of the population. Who is at risk? The traditional viewpoint, expressed by the NHS, testify that you’re more at risk of myopathy if you’re 70 years of age or older. Another risky factor is if you have a history of liver disease, if you drink lots of alcohol, or have a family history of myopathy.

Researchers from the University of Oxford have published recent findings that identified a combination of factors that increase the risk of myopathy.

Published in The European Heart Journal, the research study involved data from nearly 60,000 people at high risk of heart attacks or strokes.

The large-scale clinical trials followed patients who had been prescribed simvastatin – one of the most commonly prescribed statin worldwide.

Those involved in the trials had been prescribed the medication, on average, for 3.4 years.

The results found that myopathy was rare, roughly occurring in one per 1,000 people during each year of statin treatment.

Characteristically, people with myopathy have high blood levels of creatine kinase – a marker of muscle damage.

Moreover, the scientists determined the risk profile that makes it much more likely for this complication to occur.

Firstly, there was a higher risk of myopathy for those on a higher statin dosage.

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Secondly, the risk of myopathy increased with older age and if you were a female.

The rare complication also affected people of Chinese background rather than European heritage.

People with diabetes were also more likely to develop myopathy while taking statin medication.

This was true of people with a lower body mass index (BMI), and those who had inherited a genetic variation of the SLC01B1 gene.

The SLC01B1 gene is thought to play a role in the metabolism of statin drugs.

The study demonstrated that these predictors increased the risk of myopathy by 30-fold.

In addition, the risk of myopathy increased for those using certain other medications.

The NHS added that statins can interact with the following drug treatments:

  • Warfarin – medicine commonly used to prevent blood clots
  • Ciclosporin – medicine used to treat psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis
  • Verapamil and diltiazem – calcium channel blockers
  • Fibrates – medicines that help lower cholesterol blood levels
  • Certain HIV medication
  • Certain antibiotics and antifungals

Professor Sir Nilesh Samani said: “Satins are important drugs for reducing the risk of heart attacks and strokes, and most people who take them do not experience side effects.

“This study identifies a number of patient-specific characteristics that increase the risk of developing muscle damage.

“These may now alert a doctor to either reduce the dose or consider alternative treatments in patients who have these factors.

“This study should not in any way raise concerns in patients taking statins when their doctor thinks it will benefit them.”

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