Statins in the prevention of cardiovascular events in patients with renal failure.
HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins) are among the most widely used hypolypemizing drugs with a pleiotropic activity. Numerous clinical trials have demonstrated that statins can have a significant effect in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases in the general population. In patients with renal failure, this drug preserves the hypolypemizing efficacy found in the general population without increasing their unwanted side-effects. The re-analysis of data from epidemiological studies conducted on the general population has confirmed that statins provide cardiovascular protection also in subjects with renal failure. These data have been partly confirmed by the findings made by 4D (Die Deutsche Diabetes Dialyse Studie) and Alert studies, conducted on diabetic patients on dialysis and patients with renal transplants, respectively. The results of other studies, such as AURORA, SHARP, REnal and Vascular End stage Disease, and ESPLANADE, clearly indicate that statins prevent cardiovascular disease in patients with renal insufficiency, just as they do in the general population.
Buemi
Michele
M
Cattedra di Nefrologia, Dipartimento di Medicina Interna, Università di Messina, Via Salita Villa Contino, 98100 Messina, Italy. buemim@unime.it
Floccari
Fulvio
F
Nostro
Lorena
L
Campo
Susanna
S
Caccamo
Chiara
C
Sturiale
Alessio
A
Aloisi
Carmela
C
Giacobbe
Maria Stella
MS
Frisina
Nicola
N
D000818:Animals; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D007676:Kidney Failure, Chronic / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D051437:Renal Insufficiency / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology
D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors