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Effectiveness of Lipid-Lowering Statin Therapy in Patients With and Without Psoriasis

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Abstract

Background

Psoriasis is associated with dyslipidemia and metabolic syndrome, and has been linked to an increased cardiovascular risk. The aim of this study was to compare baseline characteristics and effects of statin therapy on lipid levels and cardiovascular outcomes in patients with and without psoriasis.

Methods

This post-hoc analysis assessed patients from one primary cardiovascular prevention statin trial (Collaborative AtoRvastatin Diabetes Study [CARDS]) and two secondary cardiovascular prevention statin trials (Treating to New Targets [TNT] and Incremental Decrease in End Points Through Aggressive Lipid Lowering [IDEAL]). Baseline characteristics, lipid changes from baseline, and cardiovascular event rates were analyzed. TNT and IDEAL data were pooled.

Results

Baseline characteristics and lipid profiles differed minimally in patients with and without psoriasis. In CARDS and TNT/IDEAL, similar apolipoprotein B, total cholesterol, and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol reductions occurred with statin therapy in patients with or without psoriasis. High-dose atorvastatin significantly reduced cardiovascular events vs. standard/low-dose statins in patients without psoriasis in TNT/IDEAL; similar numeric differences in event rates were observed in patients with psoriasis.

Conclusions

In this post-hoc analysis, statins improved lipid levels and cardiovascular outcomes in patients with and without psoriasis, supporting statin use in patients with psoriasis.

Trial registration (ClinicalTrials.gov) NCT00327418, registered 16 May, 2006; NCT00327691, registered 16 May, 2006; NCT00159835, registered 8 September, 2005.

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Acknowledgements

This post-hoc analysis was conducted by Pfizer Inc. The authors thank the steering committees of CARDS, IDEAL, and TNT for making this analysis possible.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pfizer Inc, 445 Eastern Point Road, Groton, CT, 06340, USA

    William C. Ports & Robert Wolk

  2. Pfizer Inc, New York, NY, USA

    Rana Fayyad, David A. DeMicco & Rachel Laskey

Authors
  1. William C. Ports
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  2. Rana Fayyad
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  3. David A. DeMicco
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  4. Rachel Laskey
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  5. Robert Wolk
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to William C. Ports.

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Funding

CARDS was funded by Diabetes UK, the UK Department of Health, Pfizer UK, and Pfizer Inc. The IDEAL and TNT studies were funded by Pfizer Inc. Medical writing support was provided under the direction of authors by Erin Bekes, PhD, of Complete Medical Communications, and was funded by Pfizer Inc.

Conflict of interest

William C. Ports, Rana Fayyad, David A. DeMicco, Rachel Laskey, and Robert Wolk are employees of Pfizer Inc.

Ethics approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the research ethics committee or institutional review boards, and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Consent to participate

Written informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Ports, W.C., Fayyad, R., DeMicco, D.A. et al. Effectiveness of Lipid-Lowering Statin Therapy in Patients With and Without Psoriasis. Clin Drug Investig 37, 775–785 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40261-017-0533-0

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