Study Finds Increased Risk of Cardiovascular Disease in Older Adults Who Discontinued Statins

A study published in the European Heart Journal assessed the discontinuation of statins taken for primary cardiovascular disease prevention in older people, reports News-Medical . The researchers examined 120,173 people in France, who were 75 years old between 2012 and 2014, and had been taking statins continuously for two years. Subjects who discontinued statins had a 33 percent higher risk of hospitalization with heart or blood vessel problems during an average follow-up of 2.4 years. "We would say that if you are regularly taking statins for high cholesterol, we would recommend you don't stop the treatment when you are 75," said Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital's Philippe Giral. "To doctors, we would recommend not stopping statin treatment given for primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases in . . . those aged 75."