Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Colchicine may be considered for the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease

  • Disease Management
  • Published:
Drugs & Therapy Perspectives Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The acknowledgement of the significant role of inflammation in the pathophysiology of atherosclerosis has led to the investigation of anti-inflammatory therapies for the management of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Among these are colchicine as well as other pharmacotherapies used to treat gout (e.g. allopurinol, febuxostat). While clinical trial data support the consideration of colchicine for the secondary prevention of CVD, the same cannot be said for allopurinol and febuxostat.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. World Health Organization. Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). 2021. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/cardiovascular-diseases-(cvds). Accessed 10 Feb 2023.

  2. National Heart Lung and Blood Institute. Know the difference: cardiovascular disease, heart disease, coronary heart disease. 2021. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/resources/know-differences-cardiovascular-disease-heart-disease-coronary-heart-disease. Accessed 10 Feb 2023.

  3. Visseren FLJ, Mach F, Smulders YM, et al. 2021 ESC Guidelines on cardiovascular disease prevention in clinical practice. Eur Heart J. 2021;42(34):3227–337.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Zhang FS, He QZ, Qin CH, et al. Therapeutic potential of colchicine in cardiovascular medicine: a pharmacological review. Acta Pharmacol Sin. 2022;43(9):2173–90.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. UK National Health Service. About colchicine. 2022. https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/colchicine/about-colchicine/. Accessed 12 Feb 2023.

  6. Drugs.com. Colchicine. 2022. https://www.drugs.com/mtm/colchicine.html. Accessed 12 Feb 2023.

  7. Kaul S, Gupta M, Bandyopadhyay D, et al. Gout pharmacotherapy in cardiovascular diseases: a review of utility and outcomes. Am J Cardiovasc Drugs. 2021;21(5):499–512.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  8. Ridker PM, Everett BM, Thuren T, et al. Antiinflammatory therapy with canakinumab for atherosclerotic disease. N Engl J Med. 2017;377(12):1119–31.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Nidorf SM, Eikelboom JW, Budgeon CA, et al. Low-dose colchicine for secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2013;61(4):404–10.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Tardif JC, Kouz S, Waters DD, et al. Efficacy and safety of low-dose colchicine after myocardial infarction. N Engl J Med. 2019;381(26):2497–505.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Nidorf SM, Fiolet ATL, Mosterd A. Colchicine in patients with chronic coronary disease. N Engl J Med. 2020;383(19):1838–47.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Vaidya K, Arnott C, Martínez GJ. Colchicine therapy and plaque stabilization in patients with acute coronary syndrome: a CT coronary angiography study. JACC Cardiovasc Imaging. 2018;11(2):305–16.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Hennessy T, Soh L, Bowman M. The low dose colchicine after myocardial infarction (LoDoCo-MI) study: a pilot randomized placebo controlled trial of colchicine following acute myocardial infarction. Am Heart J. 2019;215:62–9.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  14. Mackenzie IS, Hawkey CJ, Ford I, et al. Allopurinol versus usual care in UK patients with ischaemic heart disease (ALL-HEART): a multicentre, prospective, randomised, open-label, blinded-endpoint trial. Lancet. 2022;400(10359):1195–205.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Bavry AA. Allopurinol and cardiovascular outcomes in patients with ischemic heart disease—ALL-HEART. 2022. https://www.acc.org/latest-in-cardiology/clinical-trials/2022/08/26/04/10/all-heart. Accessed 12 Feb 2023.

  16. White WB, Saag KG, Becker MA. Cardiovascular safety of febuxostat or allopurinol in patients with gout. N Engl J Med. 2018;378(13):1200–10.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Mackenzie IS, Ford I, Nuki G, et al. Long-term cardiovascular safety of febuxostat compared with allopurinol in patients with gout (FAST): a multicentre, prospective, randomised, open-label, non-inferiority trial. Lancet. 2020;396(10264):1745–57.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Abeles AM, Pillinger MH. Febuxostat and the black box blues. ACR Open Rheumatol. 2019;1(6):343–4.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  19. Rekhraj S, Gandy SJ, Szwejkowski BR. High-dose allopurinol reduces left ventricular mass in patients with ischemic heart disease. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2013;61(9):926–32.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Agarwal V, Hans N, Messerli FH. Effect of allopurinol on blood pressure: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2013;15(6):435–42.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Hays AG, Iantorno M, Schär M. The influence of febuxostat on coronary artery endothelial dysfunction in patients with coronary artery disease: a phase 4 randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover trial. Am Heart J. 2018;197:85–93.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Springer Nature, Private Bag 65901, Mairangi Bay, Auckland, 0754, New Zealand

    Esther S. Kim & Arnold Lee

Authors
  1. Esther S. Kim
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Arnold Lee
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Arnold Lee.

Ethics declarations

Funding

The preparation of this review was not supported by any external funding.

Authorship and conflict of interest

E. S. Kim, a contracted employee of Adis International Ltd/Springer Nature, and A. Lee, a salaried employee of Adis International Ltd/Springer Nature, declare no relevant conflicts of interest. All authors contributed to the review and are responsible for the article content.

Ethics approval, Consent to participate, Consent for publication, Availability of data and material, Code availability  

Not applicable.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kim, E.S., Lee, A. Colchicine may be considered for the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. Drugs Ther Perspect 39, 167–170 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40267-023-00990-6

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40267-023-00990-6

Search

Navigation