With more than a billion people taking statins to manage their blood cholesterol levels, it is important that doctors explain the potential risks and benefits of these drugs before prescribing them to patients. Among the risks associated with these medications, according to the results of a new study, is an increased chance of developing diabetes and diabetes-related complications.
This new retrospective cohort study, which was conducted at the Veterans Affairs (VA) North Texas Health Systems in Dallas, tracked data on approximately 26,000 healthy (i.e. free of heart disease, diabetes and other severe chronic diseases) Tricare beneficiaries. Of these, about 4,000 were taking statins and 22,000 were not. The study followed patient data over an average period of 6.5 years and the findings were published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine on April 28, 2015.
Lead author Ishak Mansi, MD states, “In our study, statin use was associated with a significantly higher risk of new-onset diabetes, even in a very healthy population.” The study also revealed a high risk of diabetes-related complications. Patients on statins were 250 percent more likely to develop diabetes with complications than were patients who did not take statins. Furthermore, the study found that the higher the dose of the statins, the more likely the patient was to develop diabetes, complications and obesity.
This study is the first of its kind to show a connection between statin use and diabetes in otherwise healthy people. “The risk of diabetes with statins has been known,” said Dr. Mansi, “but until now it was thought that this might be due to the fact that people who were prescribed statins had greater medical risks to being with.”
The study’s authors point out, however, that their findings merely warrant further research as the data they used lacked sufficient information relating to a number of different cardiovascular parameters. Science Daily reports, “Mansi stresses that the study doesn’t definitively show that statins cause diabetes, nor does it mean people should stop using the drugs, which are widely prescribed to help people lower their cardiac risk factors.”
Additionally, Troy Brown, RN of Medscape writes that Alvin C. Powers, MD (director of the division of diabetes, endocrinology and metabolism at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee) was asked for his opinion after reviewing this study. In response, Powers said, "I think the risk/benefit ratio in people with diabetes and statins remains the same as it was before, and the recommendations per the American Diabetes Association still are relevant."
According to Science Daily, Dr. Mansi opined, “I myself am a firm believer that these medications are very valuable for patients when there are clear and strict indications for them, but knowing the risks may motivate a patient to quit smoking, rather than swallow a tablet, or to lose weight and exercise. Ideally, it is better to make those lifestyle changes and avoid taking statins if possible."
You can learn more by reading about the study in Research Currents, a publication of research news from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, here.
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