New Cholesterol Guidelines Could Drastically Reduce Statin Use for Millions

Adopting new PREVENT equations could lead to a significant reduction in statin recommendations, impacting 40% of currently eligible U.S. adults, and highlights the importance of precise risk assessment and patient communication in cholesterol management.

If national guidelines were updated to include a new risk equation, approximately 40% fewer individuals may qualify for cholesterol-lowering statins to prevent heart disease, suggests a study involving researchers from the University of Pittsburgh, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, and University of Michigan. The research, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, explores the implications of broadly implementing the PREVENT equations, introduced by the American Heart Association in November 2023. These equations are intended to refine the tools doctors use to estimate a patient’s 10-year risk of a heart attack or stroke.