Reductions in all-cause, cancer, and coronary mortality in statin-treated patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia: a prospective registry study.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the changes in coronary, all-cause, and cancer mortality in patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) before and after lipid-lowering therapy with statins.


RESULTS
A total of 3382 patients (1650 men) aged <80 years were recruited from 21 lipid clinics in the United Kingdom and followed prospectively between 1980 and 2006 for 46 580 person-years. There were 370 deaths, including 190 from coronary heart disease (CHD) and 90 from cancer. The standardized mortality ratio (compared with the population in England and Wales) was calculated before and from 1 January 1992. In patients aged 20-79 years, CHD mortality fell significantly by 37% (95% CI = 7-56) from 3.4- to 2.1-fold excess. Primary prevention resulted in a 48% reduction in CHD mortality from 2.0-fold excess to none, with a smaller reduction of nearly 25% in patients with established disease. Coronary mortality was reduced more in women than in men. In patients without known CHD at registration, all-cause mortality from 1992 was 33% (21-43), lower than in the general population, mainly due to a 37% (21-50) lower risk of fatal cancer.


CONCLUSIONS
The results emphasize the importance of early identification of FH and treatment with statins.
Neil
Andrew
A
NIHR School of Primary Care Research, Division Public Health and Primary Health Care, University of Oxford, Old Road Headington, Oxford, UK. andrew.neil@wolfson.ox.ac.uk
Cooper
Jackie
J
Betteridge
John
J
Capps
Nigel
N
McDowell
Ian
I
Durrington
Paul
P
Seed
Mary
M
Humphries
Steve E
SE
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality*; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006938:Hyperlipoproteinemia Type II / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality* / Q000517:prevention & control; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality*; D012042:Registries / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014852:Wales / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors