An analysis of a large U.S. managed care database showed that patients who took Pfizer’s cholesterol-lowering medicine Lipitor(R) (atorvastatin calcium) Tablets had a significant 14 percent reduction in the risk of cardiovascular events, including heart attacks and strokes, compared with patients who took simvastatin. Lipitor significantly reduced the risk of serious cardivascular events compared to Simvastatin in an 80,000-patient analysis of a real-world managed care database.

Physicians and healthcare plans are switching patients between what is believed to be comparable LDL-lowering doses of statins and assuming that this will result in similar cardiovascular benefits.

To replicate real-world physician and payor behavior, this study was rigorously designed to adjust for expected differences of Lipitor and simvastatin LDL lowering based on dose. Lipitor patients achieved a significant additional 14 percent reduction in the risk of cardiovascular events compared with patients taking simvastatin, even after the dose adjustments.

The analysis was presented at the American Heart Association’s 47th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and Prevention.

In a previously published real-world study of a general practice database with approximately 3,500 patients in the Netherlands, characteristics such as age and cholesterol levels were measured and adjusted to account for differences among statins. This analysis demonstrated a similar finding to the analysis presented at the meeting. Patients taking Lipitor had a significant 30 percent reduction in the risk of total events compared with those taking other statins combined. Other statins included simvastatin, pravastatin, fluvastatin, and cerivastatin.

Given the results of these two studies, Pfizer will work with managed care organizations and other healthcare networks to further understand the benefit of Lipitor compared to simvastatin after adjustments to cholesterol levels.

Key Points of the Analysis

Following are details of the analysis that showed the 14 percent event reduction:

- Patients in the analysis (61,324 taking Lipitor and 19,585 taking simvastatin) had not used statins in the previous six months.

- The primary endpoint was defined as hospitalization due to a heart attack, stroke, mini-stroke (transient ischemic attack), chest pain (angina) or coronary artery disease, vascular disease, or certain types of heart surgery.

- The primary endpoint was assessed after patients had been taking either statin for at least three months.

- The median observation time was 177 days.

- To provide a rigorous comparison, the analysis adjusted for differences in expected LDL lowering, prior cardiovascular events and baseline characteristics between the treatment groups.

Additional Findings
In a secondary analysis, which looked at event reduction from day one of Lipitor therapy, patients achieved a significant 26 percent cardiovascular risk reduction compared with patients who took simvastatin.

The differences in benefit for patients who took Lipitor was apparent early within the first three months and increased at a proportional rate during the observation period compared with patients who took simvastatin.

About Lipitor
Lipitor is the only statin with all the following criteria most important for many physicians, patients and payers: significant and proven cardiovascular event reductions, impressive average LDL lowering of 39 percent to 60 percent, and a proven safety profile across a broad range of patients.

Lipitor is the most prescribed cholesterol-lowering therapy in the world, with nearly 133 million patient-years of experience. It is supported by an extensive clinical trial program involving more than 400 ongoing and completed trials with more than 80,000 patients. There have been more than ten cardiovascular outcomes trials with more then 50,000 patients

Important US Prescribing Information
Lipitor is a prescription medication. It is used in patients with multiple risk factors for heart disease such as family history, high blood pressure, age, low HDL (”good” cholesterol) or smoking to reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke, certain kinds of heart surgery, and chest pain. When diet and exercise alone are not enough, Lipitor is used along with a low-fat diet and exercise to lower cholesterol.

Lipitor is also used in patients with type 2 diabetes and at least one other risk factor for heart disease such as high blood pressure, smoking or complications of diabetes, including eye disease and protein in urine, to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Lipitor is not for everyone. It is not for those with liver problems. And it is not for women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant.

Patients taking Lipitor should tell their doctors if they feel any new muscle pain or weakness. This could be a sign of rare but serious muscle side effects. Patients should tell their doctors about all medications they take. This may help avoid serious drug interactions. Doctors should do blood tests to check liver function before and during treatment and may adjust the dose. The most common side effects are gas, constipation, stomach pain and heartburn. They tend to be mild and often go away.

For additional product information, visit www.Lipitor.com.

Related Health News:

1. Intensive Lipitor Therapy Cuts the Risk of Hospitalizations Due to Heart Failure in Patients with Coronary Heart Disease Patients with coronary heart disease who took Lipitor(R) (atorvastatin calcium) 80 mg tablets reduced their risk of hospitalizations due to heart failure compared to patients...
2. Featured Product: Cholesterol Test Meter From time to time, Health Plan News features a few products that we believe are worthwhile. Many health-conscious people like us are concerned about our...
3. Curidium Discovers Significantly Different Patient Subgroups in Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder Curidium Medica plc, (LSE: CUR) has discovered four unique and statistically significantly different subgroups of schizophrenia/bipolar disorder patients based on their gene expression profiles. Using...
4. Study Shows Nonsurgical Treatment Reduces Neck Pain There's a new study out today that shows that a nonsurgical treatment reduces neck pain without a significant risk of paralysis. This is the largest...
5. New Stress Management Tool Reduces Blood Pressure Without Drugs Conventional stress management protocols like meditation, relaxation exercises, deep breathing or anti-anxiety medication may help people cope with stress. But they do not address the...