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AHA statement covers interactions between statins, other CV drugs
A new scientific statement released by the American Heart Association encourages health care providers to be mindful of the effects of interaction between statin medications and other drugs prescribed for CV conditions.
“Health care providers and their patients who take statins need to be aware that these medications could interact with their other heart disease medications, such as medications to control [BP], treat abnormal heart rhythms and others,” Barbara S. Wiggins, PharmD, FAHA, chair of the committee that wrote the statement, said in a press release. “While many of these drug combinations are safe, every patient is different and will tolerate medications differently. Patients need to be aware that interactions can occur and should speak to their health care providers about any unusual side effects or concerns.”
The committee analyzed medications such as antiarrhythmic drugs, medications used in treating congestive HF, antiplatelet agents and anticoagulants, immunosuppressive agents, nonstatin cholesterol-lowering agents and calcium channel blockers for potential interactions with statins.
The authors estimated that 2.8% of all hospital admissions are attributed to drug interactions, noting that, due to adverse drug reactions and underlying conditions, drug interactions may often be disguised, making the percentage even higher. The issue can be managed if patients and health care providers discuss and review during a given visit all medications the patient is taking, the committee wrote.
“To optimize patient safety, health care providers must have an understanding of the mechanisms, magnitude and potential consequences of any given [drug-drug interaction],” the authors wrote. “Interpreting this information will assist clinicians in the safe prescribing of medications and permits careful consideration of the benefits and risks of concomitant medications.”
The document lists each interacting agent, the statin that it may interact with, the effect of that interaction, the magnitude of that interaction and the resulting recommendation by the committee. The range of recommendations is: the combination is useful; it is reasonable; it may be considered; it is potentially harmful; it should be avoided; or it must be avoided.
The authors also included a treatment algorithm for patients requiring statins and fibrates, as certain statin–fibrate combinations may be harmful. – by Dave Quaile
Disclosure: Wiggins reports no relevant financial disclosures. Please see the full statement for a list of the relevant financial disclosures of the other authors and reviewers.