This week at the European Atherosclerosis Society meeting, investigators report that by combining simvastatin with ezetimibe (trade name Zetia, by Merck&Co and Schering-Plough,) they reduced LDL cholesterol significantly more than with simvastatin alone, without producing an increase in side effects. Furthermore, there was an increase in HDL cholesterol and a decrease in CRP levels over those achieved with simvastatin alone.
A second group of investigators at the same meeting reported similar benefits by combining ezetimibe with atorvastatin, lovastatin, and pravastatin as well as with simvastatin.
These results may be important in view of recent evidencethat, in high risk patients, lowering LDL cholesterol even further than current guidelines recommend can significantly improve outcomes. Since relatively few patients are treated with high enough doses of statins to meet even current guidelines, the availability, efficacy, and safety of ezetimibe may entice physicians to become somewhat more aggressive with their lipid-lowering therapy.
