title: Statin discontinuation: an underestimated risk?
abstract: Statin treatment is essential for the prevention of vascular disease. Despite the established benefits of statins, discontinuation of these agents is frequent. Whether statin discontinuation leads to adverse outcomes is still debated and the most convincing evidence is mainly restricted to patients who experienced an acute vascular event. It is important to establish if this phenomenon extends to other populations, like those without vascular disease but with a high calculated risk. Overall, it appears that even a brief discontinuation of statins might be harmful. Therefore, statin treatment should not be interrupted except if there is a very good reason. Moreover, patients should be instructed as to why they must adhere to their medication. Adherence should be monitored regularly.
authors.forename: Konstantinos
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tziomalos
authors.forename: Vasilios G
authors.initials: VG
authors.lastname: Athyros
authors.forename: Dimitri P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Mikhailidis
mesh_terms: D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013223:Statistics as Topic / Q000592:standards; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014652:Vascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D028761:Withholding Treatment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
chemical_list: D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors