A new international study led by the researcher of McMaster University has found that combination therapy of aspirin, statins and at least two blood pressure drugs given in fixed doses can reduce the risk of fatal cardiovascular disease (CVD) by more than 50%, according to Medical Xpress.
The fixed-dose combination therapy was examined with and without aspirin versus control groups in more than 18,000 patients without prior CVD. The therapy, including aspirin, cut the risk of heart attacks by 53%, stroke by 51%, and deaths from cardiovascular events by 49%.
Lead author Dr. Philip Joseph said, “This combination, either given separately or combined as a polypill, substantially reduces fatal and non-fatal CVD events. The largest effects are seen with treatments that include blood pressure-lowering agents, a statin and aspirin together, which can reduce fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events by about half.”
“The benefits are consistent at different blood pressure levels, cholesterol levels and with or without diabetes,” he added, “but larger benefits may occur in older people.”
The study, published Sunday by The Lancet and presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress, involved researchers from 13 nations and included participants from 26 countries.
The concept of combination therapy was first proposed two decades ago as a treatment strategy to substantially reduce CVD people with or without a previous heart attack or stroke.
Senior author Dr. Salim Yusuf said, “These results are huge, and its wide use can avoid between 5 and 10 million individuals experiencing a stroke, heart attack, or dying from these conditions yearly. I could see a future with development of a stronger polypill where we could see a lowering of cardiovascular disease by 65 or 70 percent around the world and leading to even greater benefits.”
“Given that all the components of the polypill are generic and low cost, polypills can be provided to people at modest costs and are likely to be very cost-effective,” he added.
World Heart Federation (WHF) President Prof. Fausto Pinto said, “The World Heart Federation is committed to promoting cardiovascular health for everyone by reducing the CVD burden worldwide, in both developed and developing countries.”
“The demonstration of a low-cost approach using fixed-dose combinations to reduce CVD by about 50 percent is extraordinary and represents a huge opportunity to tackle the condition globally, with a major potential impact on people’s lives,” he added. “The WHF has supported the use of a polypill for the last decade and these results provide robust evidence to strengthen our global advocacy strategy.”
Sir Jeremy Farrar, Director of Wellcome Trust said, “The Wellcome Trust supported one of the three major studies that are included in the analysis, based on the recommendations that emanated from a workshop convened with the World Health Organization in London in August 2001.”
“The Wellcome Trust has been committed to evaluating low-cost widely applicable solutions for common diseases including cardiovascular disease,” he added. “We are pleased that our support has contributed to the development of robust evidence indicating that the polypill or fixed-dose combinations involving blood pressure lowering, statins, and aspirin can reduce CVD substantially.”
