Statin intolerance: why do findings appear to differ so much?

Last year, the statins debate took some strange and personal turns in the UK. The issues were complex and entangled in unhelpful ways, but one fundamental question is that of statin intolerance: why do the findings of clinical trials and clinical experience appear to differ so much? The best way to determine the true prevalence of statin related muscle pains would be through a large series of n-of-one trials with complete blinding and adequate washout periods; but this is never going to be practical. The worst would be to depend on GP record entries and patient discontinuation. There are some in-between possibilities and I look forward to Ben Goldacre’s coming short book on the topic. In the meantime, if you are interested in the issue, look up this quite useful Viewpoint.

Source: Doc2Doc BMJ Cardiology - March 17, 2015 Category: Cardiology Authors: Richard Lehman Source Type: forums