To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: Majority Of Women Reach LDL Targets With Lipitor, Study Shows URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/B98B2.htm Doctor's Guide October 26, 1998
TORONTO, ON -- Oct. 26, 1998 -- The results of the Women's Atorvastatin Trial on Cholesterol (WATCH), an all-women Canadian cardiovascular research study, show that Parke-Davis' Lipitor® (atorvastatin calcium) is effective in assisting women to reach targets for LDL cholesterol (LDL-C). The study results were announced at the recent Canadian Cardiovascular Society annual meeting in Ottawa. The 16-week study, conducted at 43 centres in Canada with 318 women aged 18 to 75, determined that when patients were put on Lipitor (10 mg to 80 mg), 87 percent of women with two or more risk factors for coronary heart disease (CHD) reached target LDL-C levels, while 81 percent of women with established CHD reached target LDL-C levels. "The WATCH results will provide physicians with the valuable information needed to adequately treat women with coronary and other atherosclerotic diseases, or heart disease risk factors to appropriate LDL target levels," said Dr. Jacques Genest Jr., principal co-investigator of the study. "Not only did the majority of women reach established U.S. LDL target levels, but they also met the more aggressive new recommended Canadian cholesterol treatment guidelines recently developed." The WATCH study involved the cholesterol-lowering drug, Lipitor, an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, or statin. Women with CHD and/or U.S. NCEP (National Cholesterol Education Program) risk factors for CHD and other atherosclerotic diseases (for example, age, smoking, diabetes, family history of heart disease, hypertension, low HDL cholesterol levels or menopausal status) were enrolled. The study focused on the ability of Lipitor to achieve U.S. NCEP LDL-C treatment goals according to the presence of CHD risk factors or established CHD. It is estimated that 4.2 million Canadian adults have LDL-C levels that warrant dietary intervention and fewer than one-third of those who should be treated with drug therapy for high cholesterol are receiving such therapy. The incidence of heart disease increases sharply in postmenopausal women. This is primarily due to the decline of women's estrogen levels as menopause is reached, resulting in higher LDL-C levels and lower HDL-C levels. Related Links: Lipitor --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.