This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Prescription fish oil dramatically reduces heart problems
NEW ORLEANS — In patients with a high risk for CV events despite taking statins, a 4-g dose of icosapent ethyl, a pharmaceutical-grade omega-3 fatty acid, significantly cut the incidence of first, repeat and total ischemic events, such as myocardial infarctions, strokes, related deaths, procedures for coronary artery disease and hospitalizations for unstable angina, by 30%, according to data presented at the American College of Cardiology Scientific Session.
These results indicate that prescription fish oil may be more protective against CV events than initially reported, according to the researchers.
The high dose of icosapent ethyl may be a new method to prevent CV complications among patients with elevated triglycerides who have heart disease or diabetes while also lowering costs, according to the researchers.
“With this drug, we are not only preventing that first heart attack but potentially the second stroke and maybe that third fatal event,” Deepak L. Bhatt, MD, MPH, executive director of interventional cardiovascular programs at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and the study’s lead author, said in a press release. “Prevention of such subsequent CV events could improve patient outcomes and quality of life and may lower the total cost burden of medical care.”
“We were surprised by how large an effect size there is and how much of an impact the drug is having on these patients over time, especially in the context of patients who are already well treated with background therapy,” he added.
For more information on Bhatt’s study, please click here. – by Alaina Tedesco
Reference:
Bhatt DL, et al. Late-Breaking Clinical Trials IV. Presented at: American College of Cardiology Scientific Session; March 16-18, 2019; New Orleans.
Disclosures: The study was funded by Amarin. Bhatt reports he has financial ties with multiple pharmaceutical and device companies, including Amarin.