Study: Statins increase life expectancy

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Study Statins increase life expectancy

• Detroit News, Associated Press

http//hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/STATIN_STUD
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Statins lowering cholesterol

• Cholesterol lowering drugs known as statins can
  increase the life expectancy of elderly patients
  by an average of two years, a new study by a
  doctor at the University of Arkansas for Medical
  Sciences claims.
• The study by Dr. J.L. Mehta tracked nearly 1.5
  million patients in the U.S. Department of
  Veterans Affairs' South Central Healthcare
  Network. Doctors prescribed statins to about
  350,000 patients, almost half older than 70.
  Another 1.2 million patients did not receive the
  drugs.

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American Journal of Cardiology

• "We were surprised to find that statin users
  actually lived an average two years longer
  despite the patients having more health risk
  factors and being older than non-statin users,"
  Mehta said in a press release. "We did not expect
  that statin therapy would have such a profound
  impact on patients' lives."
• Statins reduce the amount of cholesterol produced
  by the liver. Cholesterol can form plaque within
  arteries, which reduces blood flow and can cause
  heart attacks and strokes. By lowering the amount
  of cholesterol in the blood, statins can slow
  plaque buildup and can help reduce the amount of
  existing plaque.

AJC
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The study

• Data were obtained from the VISN 16 Data
  Warehouse. The VISN 16 Data Warehouse contains
  clinical and demographic information on all
  patients cared for at the 10 medical centers
  included in the South Central Veterans Affairs
  Healthcare Network in the mid-south region of the
  United States.
• The Data Warehouse, implemented in 1996,
  electronically and automatically retrieves and
  stores data from all patients entered into the
  Veterans Affairs computerized system.
• These data include demographics, laboratory
  tests, vital signs, drugs prescribed, outpatient
  visits, hospitalizations, and International
  Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision and
  Diagnosis Related Groups (DRG) codes.
• As of March 31, 2004, the database contained data
  for approximately 1.5 million patients.

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Statin users were higher risk
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Lower predicted probability of death
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Mean age of death no statin use
Mean age of death statin use