Men's Health Women's Health Senior's Health Antioxidants Sports Nutrition Diet & Weight Loss Vitamins & Minerals Herbs Specialty Supplements Targeted Supplements Spa Products Anti-Aging Basics Body Systems Body Structure Book Store Pet Health My Recommendation My Favorite Articles Our Most Popular Specials Bargain Basement Brands

MSM

Health News Archive 347 - Statin Drug Side Effects
<<back to structure/function index

Will Statin-Induced Heart Failure be the Next "Vioxx?"

Twenty-one hypercholesterolemic patients (mean age, 56 years) who were otherwise healthy received 20 mg/day of simvastatin for six months.  The mean left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) decreased from 61% at baseline to 58% after one month (p=0.02), but returned to the baseline value at three and six months.  The authors concluded that simvastatin treatment is not associated with impairment in left ventricular function in hypercholesterolemic patients after six months of treatment.  The study was funded by Merck Sharp and Dohme (Australia).

Comment by Alan R. Gaby, MD

Coenzyme Q10 deficiency has been found in myocardial tissue of patients with congestive heart failure, and CoQ10 supplementation improved heart failure in some but not all studies.  In the new study, the author's conclusion did not mention the significant decrease in LVEF that occurred after one month of simvastatin treatment.  This decrease could be clinically significant for patients with heart failure or marginal myocardial function.  There are case reports in which initiation of treatment with a statin drug was followed by cardiac decompensation in patients with previously stable heart failure. 

The authors of the new study reported that plasma CoenzymeQ10 levels decreased with simvastatin treatment, but that the ratio of CoQ10 to LDL cholesterol actually increased.  One could argue that the ratio is more important than the absolute CoQ10 concentration, but neither of those measurements necessarily correlates closely with tissue CoQ10 concentrations.  In animal studies, administration of lovastatin or pravastatin resulted in a significant reduction in CoQ10 concentrations in myocardial tissue. 

One wonders whether statin-induced heart failure will be the next "Vioxx."  Perhaps, one day, the main question in a class-action lawsuit will be, what did the drug companies know and when did they know it, regarding the potential of statins to cause heart failure and the ability of coenzyme Q10 to prevent it.

Source: Colquhoun DM, et al. Effects of simvastatin on blood lipids, vitamin E, coenzyme Q10 levels and left ventricular function in humans. Eur J Clin Invest. 2005;35:251-258.

Reprinted with exclusive permission of The Townsend Letter May 2006.

back to top