title: Clinical efficacy and safety of cerivastatin in the treatment of heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia.
abstract: Patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia are at especially high risk of premature coronary artery disease and usually require aggressive long-term lipid-lowering drug therapy to decrease plasma low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol concentrations to normal levels. In the present study, the lipid-lowering effects of cerivastatin in combination with cholestyramine and probucol were investigated in 20 patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia over a 20-week treatment period. After an initial 4-week treatment with once-daily 0.2 mg cerivastatin, serum total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels had decreased by a significant 22% and 25%, respectively (p <0.01). The addition of 8 g/day cholestyramine or 1 g/day probucol to ongoing cerivastatin therapy produced further significant reductions in total cholesterol of 16% and 16%, respectively, and in LDL cholesterol of 22% and 15%, respectively (p <0.01), over the 12-week combination therapy period. The potent lipid-lowering effects of combined treatment were accompanied by excellent toleration of study drugs. Only 2 patients experienced gastrointestinal side effects associated with cholestyramine therapy. There was no evidence of any abnormalities in creatine phosphokinase in either treatment group and only 2 patients exhibited minor increases in hepatic transaminases. This study has shown that cerivastatin can be safely combined with either cholesytramine or probucol to provide a safe and highly effective hypolipidemic treatment regimen for patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia.
authors.affiliation: Second Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Kanazawa University, Japan.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mabuchi
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Koizumi
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kajinami
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000924:Anticholesteremic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001053:Apolipoproteins / Q000097:blood; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood; D002792:Cholestyramine Resin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006579:Heterozygote; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006938:Hyperlipoproteinemia Type II / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011725:Pyridines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012449:Safety; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D000924:Anticholesteremic Agents; D001053:Apolipoproteins; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors; D011725:Pyridines; D014280:Triglycerides; D002792:Cholestyramine Resin; C086276:cerivastatin