title: The status of lipid management in 1,836 patients with coronary artery disease: a multicenter survey to evaluate the percentage of Japanese coronary artery disease patients achieving the target low-density lipoprotein cholesterol level specified by the Japan Atherosclerosis Society.
abstract: To determine the status of lipid management in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) in Japan, we assessed CAD patients who had been receiving lipid-lowering therapy for six months in a cross-sectional survey conducted between June 2001 and December 2002. We defined the achievement rate as the percentage of patients who achieved the target LDL-C level (< 100 mg/dl) specified by the Japan Atherosclerosis Society (JAS). A total of 1,836 Japanese CAD patients were enrolled. In total, 549 (29.9%) achieved the target level. The achievement rate among those receiving statin therapy was 41.3%, which was significantly higher than that (23.4%) among the patients not receiving statin (P < 0.0001). The rate differed with the type of statin; being 54.7% for atorvastatin, 24.8% for pravastatin, 37.1% for simvastatin, and 27.8% for fluvastatin. A multiple regression analysis revealed that atorvastatin use (P < 0.001), and simvastatin use (P = 0.004) significantly contributed to the achievement of the target LDL-C level. In conclusion, large proportions of CAD patients are not achieving the JAS target and the success rates are not similar among different statin therapies, suggesting that cardiologists should consider a more aggressive lipid-lowering therapy with the appropriate choice of statins in Japanese CAD patients.
authors.affiliation: Heart Institute of Japan, Department of Cardiology, Tokyo Women's Medical University, Tokyo, Japan. mnagashima@tokyoheart.or.jp
authors.forename: Hirotaka
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nagashima
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kasanuki
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000097:blood* / Q000150:complications; D005260:Female; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006949:Hyperlipidemias / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D007564:Japan; D008077:Lipoproteins, LDL / Q000097:blood*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
chemical_list: D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors; D008077:Lipoproteins, LDL