Systematic review on evidence of the effectiveness of cholesterol-lowering drugs.
BACKGROUND
Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of mortality worldwide. With increasingly urbanized lifestyles in developing countries and the aging populations, the major risk factors for CHD such as obesity, diabetes mellitus, and hypercholesterolemia are likely to increase in the future. In the current report, we reviewed the evidence on the effect of cholesterol lowering using pharmacological agents.


METHODS
A PubMed/Medline systematic search was performed over the past 12 years (1998-2009 inclusive) and relevant papers written in the English language were selected. We used key phrases including, "risk factors for hypercholesterolemia," "management of hypercholesterolemia," "guidelines for management of hypercholesterolemia," and "pharmacological management of hypercholesterolemia."


RESULTS
There were a total of over 3500 reports. We selected key publications on the effect of cholesterol lowering using different pharmacological agents.


CONCLUSIONS
Several options exist with regards to pharmacological management of hypercholesterolemia. There is a substantial body of evidence to support the effect of a population shift towards a favorable risk profile, which has huge potential in reducing the burden of CHD globally.
Department of Medicine, West Wales Hospital, Carmarthen, Wales, UK.
Abhaya
A
Gupta
Veronique
V
Guyomard
M Justin S
MJ
Zaman
Habib U
HU
Rehman
Phyo Kyaw
PK
Myint
D000924:Anticholesteremic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001384:Azetidines / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002792:Cholestyramine Resin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D055317:Evidence-Based Practice; D000069438:Ezetimibe; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000627:therapeutic use; D015248:Gemfibrozil / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors; D006937:Hypercholesterolemia / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D009525:Niacin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018579:Patient Selection; D010840:Phytosterols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011322:Primary Prevention; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D040242:Risk Reduction Behavior; D055502:Secondary Prevention; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D000924:Anticholesteremic Agents; D001384:Azetidines; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors; D010840:Phytosterols; D002792:Cholestyramine Resin; D009525:Niacin; D000069438:Ezetimibe; D015248:Gemfibrozil