Statins that treat excess cholesterol may reduce the risk of glaucoma. But the researchers who conducted the study leading to this conclusion emphasize that the treatment or prevention of glaucoma is not a reason in itself to prescribe this treatment.
The use of statins, drugs used for thirty years to fight against excess cholesterol and the risk of cardiovascular disease associated with it, could have a beneficial effect on the risk of glaucoma. This is according to a study published in Jama Ophthalmology which announces a 21% reduction in this risk after at least 5 years of use of statins.
A disease that can lead to blindness
Glaucoma is a degenerative disease of the optic nerve that causes progressive loss of vision, initially peripheral and then progressing towards the centre. This disease is often associated with high intraocular pressure which compresses and damages the fibers of the optic nerve and the retina. The vision loss associated with glaucoma is permanent and irreversible and without treatment this disease can lead to blindness.
The team which has just published in Jama Ophthalmology recalls that several previous studies on the link between the use of statins and glaucoma had given contradictory results. They therefore sought to base themselves on long-term data.
Increased cholesterol associated with increased risk of glaucoma
The researchers followed 136,782 people for 15 years. These participants reported their total steric cholesterol and their use of cholesterol-lowering medications. Over 15 years, the study showed that there were 886 cases of open-angle glaucoma in this population, the most common. And it found that every 20-point increase in total cholesterol was associated with a 7% increased risk of glaucoma.
“Not a reason, per se, to start taking statins”
After adjusting the data for other factors, the study showed that using statins for at least 5 years reduced the risk of glaucoma by 21%. “This suggests that statins reduce pressure in the eyes, help maintain good blood flow, and may help protect the optic nerve,” said Jae H. Kang, assistant professor of medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. But before I add that treating or preventing glaucoma was not a reason in and of itself to start taking statins. “Our study was not looking at whether statins stop disease progression, that would require a clinical trial,” she said.
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