Changing atherosclerosis to dementia
Taking statins increases the risk of dementia by half
Svetlana Maslova, Hi-tech+
Scientists analyzed the condition of patients on regular statin intake for eight years and concluded that they increase the risk of neurodegeneration by more than half. It is not yet clear how these results will affect the treatment protocols of people with high cholesterol who take these medications every day.
Until now, clinical studies have provided very contradictory information about the role of statins in the development of dementia. Some claimed that the drugs protect against neurodegeneration, while others, on the contrary, testified to the acceleration of its development. A team of scientists from the University of California at Los Angeles decided to put an end to this issue and assess the effect of statins on people in the long term.
Their work is due to the widespread demand for statins among older people around the world who are prescribed drugs to control cholesterol levels. For example, in the USA alone, almost 50% of people over the age of 75 take them constantly to reduce the risks of stroke and heart attack.
The team focused on hydrophilic statins acting on the liver and lipophilic statins distributed throughout the body tissues. The study involved 303 patients who either showed mild signs of cognitive impairment or had no signs of dementia. All volunteers were divided into subgroups according to the types of statins taken, cholesterol levels and cognitive status. The observation lasted for eight years.
Taking lipophilic statins increased the risk of dementia by more than half, observations showed.
It is noteworthy that at the initial stage of the experiment, the level of cholesterol in the serum of this group of people in this subgroup was low or moderate.
The results were obtained when compared with taking hydrophilic statins, as well as among people with higher baseline cholesterol levels who did not take medications.
The risk assessment was carried out using a PET scan of the brain, which showed the level of metabolism in the posterior cortex. It is known that in people with dementia, this area of the brain is affected at the earliest stages.
As a result of taking lipophilic statins, patients had clinical and metabolic signs of dementia, while volunteers from other subgroups did not have them.
It is not yet clear how these results will affect existing treatment protocols.
"Currently, they can be used to inform patients about the decision to take statins and choose the most optimal drug," the authors concluded. Their work is due to the widespread demand for statins among older people around the world who are prescribed drugs to control cholesterol levels. For example, in the USA alone, almost 50% of people over the age of 75 take them constantly to reduce the risks of stroke and heart attack.
The team focused on hydrophilic statins acting on the liver and lipophilic statins distributed throughout the body tissues. The study involved 303 patients who either showed mild signs of cognitive impairment or had no signs of dementia. All volunteers were divided into subgroups according to the types of statins taken, cholesterol levels and cognitive status. The observation lasted for eight years.
Report by Padmanabham et al. At the Annual Congress of the Society for Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Lipophilic Statins in Subjects with Early Mild Cognitive Impairment: Associations with Conversion to Dementia and Decline in Posterior Cingulate Brain Metabolism in a Long-term Prospective Longitudinal Multi-Center Study published in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine – VM.
Taking lipophilic statins increased the risk of dementia by more than half, observations showed.
It is noteworthy that at the initial stage of the experiment, the level of cholesterol in the serum of this group of people in this subgroup was low or moderate.
The results were obtained when compared with taking hydrophilic statins, as well as among people with higher baseline cholesterol levels who did not take medications.
The risk assessment was carried out using a PET scan of the brain, which showed the level of metabolism in the posterior cortex. It is known that in people with dementia, this area of the brain is affected at the earliest stages.
As a result of taking lipophilic statins, patients had clinical and metabolic signs of dementia, while volunteers from other subgroups did not have them.
It is not yet clear how these results will affect existing treatment protocols.
"Currently, they can be used to inform patients about the decision to take statins and choose the most optimal drug," the authors concluded.
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