title: Early initiation of statin treatment in children with familial hypercholesterolaemia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This article provides recent insights on the early onset of atherosclerosis in heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia and reports on novel treatment options as well as on the consequences of long-term statin use in childhood.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Children with familial hypercholesterolemia have greater mean carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) than their unaffected siblings even before the age of 8 years, which is several years earlier than previously reported. In those children, 2 years of rosuvastatin treatment resulted in slowing of the cIMT progression. In addition, in a 10-year follow-up study after a pravastatin intervention trial, long-term statin therapy in young adult familial hypercholesterolemia patients was associated with normalization of cIMT progression and appeared effective in prevention of very premature cardiovascular events. These effects were observed without untoward safety concerns. However, a majority of these young adults did not reach cholesterol goals according to general guidelines, indicating the need for improvement of treatment in this patient group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The importance, efficacy and safety of early initiation statin therapy in familial hypercholesterolemia children were further confirmed by recent findings. Nevertheless, to reach current treatment goals, the use of more potent statins is required and has been proven well tolerated and effective in young children.
authors.affiliation: aDepartment of Vascular Medicine bPediatrics cClinical Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Bioinformatics, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Marjet J A M
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Braamskamp
authors.forename: Barbara A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Hutten
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wiegman
mesh_terms: D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002648:Child; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006938:Hyperlipoproteinemia Type II / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D017035:Pravastatin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors; D017035:Pravastatin