Statins: Experts at odds on whether millions should take them
Rita Redberg
"People have a very exaggerated idea of the benefits " said Dr. Rita Redberg   a professor of medicine at University of California  San Francisco and the editor-in-chief of the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.
This is different from secondary prevention: the use of statins to prevent heart attacks and strokes in people who have already had one.  Redberg  said the evidence for this is much stronger.
Out of 100 people taking primary preventive statins for five years  "the best estimates are that one or two people will avoid a heart attack  and none will live longer  by taking statins "  Redberg  said.
But  Redberg  said that there are plenty of experts without conflicts of interest  which is important to keep in mind when considering top-selling drugs like statins.
"It's billions of dollars here "  she  said. "You can't ignore that."
"People have a very exaggerated idea of the benefits " said Dr. [TGT]   a professor of medicine at University of California  San Francisco and the editor-in-chief of the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.
This is different from secondary prevention: the use of statins to prevent heart attacks and strokes in people who have already had one.  Redberg  said the evidence for this is much stronger.
Out of 100 people taking primary preventive statins for five years  "the best estimates are that one or two people will avoid a heart attack  and none will live longer  by taking statins "  Redberg  said.
But  Redberg  said that there are plenty of experts without conflicts of interest  which is important to keep in mind when considering top-selling drugs like statins.
"It's billions of dollars here "  she  said. "You can't ignore that."