Association Between Lowering LDL-C and Cardiovascular Risk Reduction Among Different Therapeutic Interventions

The comparative clinical benefit of nonstatin therapies that reduce low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) remains uncertain.

To evaluate the association between lowering LDL-C and relative cardiovascular risk reduction across different statin and nonstatin therapies. DATA SOURCES AND STUDY SELECTION: The MEDLINE and EMBASE databases were searched (1966-July 2016). The key inclusion criteria were that the study was a randomized clinical trial and the reported clinical outcomes included myocardial infarction (MI). Studies were excluded if the duration was less than 6 months or had fewer than 50 clinical events. Studies of 9 different types of LDL-C reduction approaches were included. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS: Two authors independently extracted and entered data into standardized data sheets and data were analyzed using meta-regression. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The relative risk (RR) of major vascular events (a composite of cardiovascular death, acute MI or other acute coronary syndrome, coronary revascularization, or stroke) associated with the absolute reduction in LDL-C level; 5-year rate of major coronary events (coronary death or MI) associated with achieved LDL-C level.