Statin risks may outweigh benefits for patients with a history of brain hemorrhage

A computer decision model suggests that, for patients with a history of bleeding within the brain, the risk of recurrence associated with statin treatment may outweigh the benefit of the drug in preventing cardiovascular disease, according to a report posted on-line this week that will appear in the May print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

Statins constitute one of the most important sectors of the pharmaceutical industry, with total revenues exceeding $25 billion in 2009, according to a recent study from VisionGain.

The benefits of statins for reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke are well established, but more widespread use of statin therapy remains controversial, according to background information in the article. "A particular subgroup of patients for whom the advisability of statin use is unclear are those at high risk for intracerebral hemorrhage," or a stroke caused by bleeding within the brain, the authors write. "The reason for added concern is the increased incidence of intracerebral hemorrhage observed among subjects randomized to statin therapy in a clinical trial of secondary stroke prevention," they said.