Second Stroke may be prevented by Cholesterol Lowering Drugs
Taking statins or cholesterol lowering drugs may just be the answer to lower the risk for a second stroke. This is the result of a decade long study participated in by 800 stroke patients.
The research published in the May issue of the journal Neurology, the population 
who took statins had a 35% lower occurrence of second strokes and a lower mortality rate of 57% compared to those who did not take the cholesterol lowering drugs.
Some of the popular brands of statins in the market are Zocor, Pravachol, Lipitor, and Crestor.
The results of the study supports and echoes a bigger research done in 2006 called the SPARCL or Stroke Prevention by Aggressive Reduction in Cholesterol Levels.
Both studies clearly indicate the benefits of the cholesterol lowering drugs.
SPARCL involved around 4700 individuals around the globe who had transient ischemic attacks and strokes. The research had a 16% decrease in second strokes and a 35% reduction in occurrences of coronary events for patients who were given 80mg of Lipitor a day.
The new study had an 8% incident of second stroke for those taking statins while 16% was recorded for the subjects who did not take the drug.
The effect of the statin in preventing second stroke may not primarily be attributed to its cholesterol lowering effect but on its other mechanisms like antioxidative effects, anti inflammatory actions, prevention of blood clotting, and stabilizing of arterial plaques.
In the United States, it has been a practice to administer statins to patients after a stroke even to patients who have normal levels of cholesterol. More info is available at the Cholesterol Watchguards, a great resource for cholesterol-patients!
Leave a Comment