Drug Found to Reduce Stroke in Heart Patients

A clinical study has demonstrated that patients treated with atorvastatin calcium (Lipitor) upon hospital admission for a mild heart attack or severe chest pain were significantly (59%) less likely to experience a nonfatal stroke within the following four months. The findings were published in the April 4 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). The study was called MIRACL (myocardial ischemia reduction with aggressive cholesterol lowering).

These same patients were also found to be 50% less likely to experience a fatal or nonfatal stroke. Nine of the patients experienced a nonfatal stroke in the Lipitor group, compared with 22 in the placebo group. The study involved 3,086 patients who received either Lipitor or placebo for 16 weeks, both with dietary education and counseling. The reductions in strokes observed occurred in patients regardless of age, gender, cholesterol levels or other risk factors such as high blood pressure or diabetes.

The low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels of subjects declined from an average of 123 mg/dl to 72 mg/dl during treatment, showing that Lipitor reduced levels well below the current guideline of 100 mg/dl. Lipitor is the product of Pfizer Inc. (New York, NY, USA).




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