Most statin side-effects not caused by the drugs, study finds

Key Highlights

• And the risks are very small, according to the systematic review and meta-analysis published in the Lancet. Statins have been used by hundreds of millions of people worldwide over the last three decades and are proven to reduce heart attacks, strokes and cardiovascular deaths.
• At the same time, millions have been put off the drugs amid long-running safety concerns, with statin labels listing dozens of possible side-effects. The study is the most comprehensive assessment of evidence for listed side-effects of statins.
• It examined 19 randomised controlled trials involving 124,000 people, with an average follow-up of four and a half years.
• Of the 66 side-effects currently listed on product labels, researchers found no strong evidence to support statins causing 62 of them, such as memory problems, depression, sleep disturbances and nerve damage leading to tingling in the hands and feet. The results showed the risk of most listed side-effects was minimal while the benefits far outweighed potential harms.
• As a result, labels should be updated to better reflect the evidence so patients and doctors could make more informed choices about statins, the researchers said. The study’s lead author, Christina Reith, an associate professor at Oxford University, said: “What we were able to show reliably was that statins did not make these commonly experienced events occur more often.“So for example, the percentage of people suffering memory loss per year was similar to those taking statin therapy as those not, equally.