Lowering LDL cholesterol does not significantly slow down CKD progression

There were some disappointing results from clinical trials for several current therapies presented at the European Renal Association European Dialysis and Transplant Association (RDA-EDT) meeting taking place in the Czech capital Prague over the weekend.

The SHARP-study has shown that lowering low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol with ezetimibe/simvastatin leads to a significant reduction in major atherosclerotic events among chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. Whether it also has a favorable effect on renal disease progression was another of the issues addressed by the SHARP study [abstract no. 2509]. In the ezetimibe/simvastatin group, fewer patients reached the end point "end stage renal disease," but the difference was not significant [p = 0.41].

No improvement in cardiovascular outcome due to optimized treatment quality