Efficacy and safety of add on therapies in patients with hypercholesterolemia undergoing statin therapy.

Efficacy and safety of add on therapies in patients with hypercholesterolemia undergoing statin therapy. Expert Opin Pharmacother. 2020 Aug 09;:1-15 Authors: Tomlinson B, Chan P, Zhang Y, Lam CWK Abstract INTRODUCTION: Statins are the first-line treatment to reduce cardiovascular (CV) events, mainly by reducing low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), but many patients need additional treatments to reach the current lipid goals. AREAS COVERED: Herein, the authors review the published literature on the efficacy and safety of the therapies that are most often added to statins to achieve lipid targets. EXPERT OPINION: Ezetimibe is usually the first additional treatment to achieve LDL-C targets. It reduces LDL-C by about a further 20% and has an excellent safety and tolerability profile. The monoclonal antibody proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) inhibitors, evolocumab, and alirocumab, can reduce LDL-C by ≥50% when added to statins and they also have a well-established safety and tolerability record. The recently approved bempedoic acid is well tolerated and appears to be free of skeletal muscle-related problems, but the CV outcome study with this drug has not been completed. Inclisiran, a small-interfering RNA targeting PCSK9 is at an advanced stage of development and the available data indicate a satisfactory safety profile and LDL-C lowering efficacy similar to the PCSK9 monoclonal antibodies wi...
Source: Expert Opinion on Pharmacotherapy - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Tags: Expert Opin Pharmacother Source Type: research