Cardiovascular disease affects thousands of Britons every year. Preventive treatment could decrease mortality, but this is highly controversial.
Statins are drugs primarily prescribed to patients being treated for cardiovascular disease. They reduce the accumulation of fat in the arteries.
Today, a controversial decision by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), UK, asks doctors to prescribe statins to low-risk patients, with only a one in ten chance of have a heart attack within the next ten years.
To avoid 8000 heart attacks
In fact, this would affect 40% of the British population. Anyone over the age of 65 could be prescribed this medicine. And people who are obese or have high cholesterol may start taking it much sooner.
For the British Institute, this preventive measure would have very positive effects on mortality, while cardiac arrests are today the leading cause of death in the United Kingdom, killing 118,000 people each year. The Institute estimates that giving statins preventively, even to people at low risk, could potentially save 4,000 lives and prevent 8,000 heart attacks over the next three years.
Strong opposition
Many doctors have contested this measure. Firstly because it has a cost, estimated at 52 million pounds per year, but also because giving statins as a preventive measure, without there being any real therapeutic utility, could have undesirable effects on people. who are least at risk.
These opponents therefore prefer to insist on other factors to reduce the risks, starting with prevention to change lifestyles, by insisting on a healthy diet and regular physical activity, which, according to them, would have as many effects. positive.
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-1739366311.jpg "Ellie Bloom: “Seeing the size of the hole in my heart, the cardiologist told me that I had a guardian angel”")
