Long-term Persistence in Use of Statin Therapy in Elderly Patients

CONTEXT: Knowledge of long-term persistence with 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitor (statin) therapy is limited because previous studies have observed patients for short periods of time, in closely monitored clinical trials, or in other unrepresentative settings. OBJECTIVE: To describe the patterns and predictors of long-term persistence with statin therapy in an elderly US population. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PATIENTS: Retrospective cohort study including 34 501 enrollees in the New Jersey Medicaid and Pharmaceutical Assistance to the Aged and Disabled programs who were 65 years of age and older, initiated statin treatment between 1990 and 1998, and who were followed up until death,…