Total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol were reduced in all trials but there was evidence of heterogeneity of effects .
There was no evidence of any serious harm caused by statin prescription .
Evidence available to date showed that primary prevention with statins is likely to be cost-effective and may improve patient quality of life .
Recent findings from the Cholesterol Treatment Trialists study using individual patient data meta- analysis indicate that these benefits are similar in people at lower ( < 1 % per year ) risk of a major cardiovascular event .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS Reductions in all-cause mortality , major vascular events and revascularisations were found with no excess of adverse events among people without evidence of CVD treated with statins
BACKGROUND Reducing high blood cholesterol , a risk factor for cardiovascular disease ( CVD ) events in people with and without a past history of CVD is an important goal of pharmacotherapy .
Statins are the first-choice agents .
Previous review s of the effects of statins have highlighted their benefits in people with CVD .
The case for primary prevention was uncertain when the last version of this review was published ( 2011 ) and in light of new data an up date of this review is required .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects , both harms and benefits , of statins in people with no history of CVD .
Lovastatin effects on bone mineral density in postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes mellitus
The objective of this study was to examine the effects of lovastatin on bone mineral density ( BMD ) of postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes mellitus ( DM ) . The study was an open-label clinical trial conducted from March 2002 to November 2003 . Fifty-five postmenopausal women age 54–67 years with type 2 DM were allocated to lovastatin-treated and control ( without lovastatin ) groups based on low-density lipoprotein cholesterol ( LDL-C ) > 130 or ≤130 mg/dl . The first group received lovastatin ( 20 mg daily titrated every 3 months to keep LDL-C less than 130 mg/dl ) for a total of 18 months . The second group received their own diabetic regimen without statin . The BMD of the lumbar spine ( L1-L4 ) , femoral neck , Wards triangle , trochanter and total hip was measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry at baseline and after 18 months . In the 28 women treated with lovastatin  , the BMD increased in lumbar spine ( from 0.946 ( 0.122 ) to 0.978 ( 0.135 ) g/cm2 , p<0.01 ) and Ward ’s triangle ( from 0.685 ( 0.123 ) to 0.780 ( 0.186 ) g/cm2 , p<0.01 ) . In the 27 women not treated with statin , the changes in BMD at all bone sites were not statistically significant . BMD was higher in femoral neck ( 1.2 % vs. −2.7 % , p<0.05 ) , Ward ’s triangle ( 13.9 % vs. 3.3 % , p<0.05 ) , trochanter ( −0.1 % vs. −2.9 % , p<0.05 ) , total hip ( 1.2 % vs. −1.4 % , p<0.05 ) and lumbar spine ( 3.4 % vs. 1.2 % , p>0.05 ) at the end of the study . Treatment with lovastatin may prevent bone loss in postmenopausal women with type 2 DM
Total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol were reduced in all trials but there was evidence of heterogeneity of effects .
There was no evidence of any serious harm caused by statin prescription .
Evidence available to date showed that primary prevention with statins is likely to be cost-effective and may improve patient quality of life .
Recent findings from the Cholesterol Treatment Trialists study using individual patient data meta- analysis indicate that these benefits are similar in people at lower ( < 1 % per year ) risk of a major cardiovascular event .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS Reductions in all-cause mortality , major vascular events and revascularisations were found with no excess of adverse events among people without evidence of CVD treated with statins
BACKGROUND Reducing high blood cholesterol , a risk factor for cardiovascular disease ( CVD ) events in people with and without a past history of CVD is an important goal of pharmacotherapy .
Statins are the first-choice agents .
Previous review s of the effects of statins have highlighted their benefits in people with CVD .
The case for primary prevention was uncertain when the last version of this review was published ( 2011 ) and in light of new data an up date of this review is required .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects , both harms and benefits , of statins in people with no history of CVD .