Generally speaking, lowering blood lipid to the normal range is not the standard for stopping statins, but only shows that the drugs are effective. You need to continue to take medicine regularly and stick to it for as long as possible. According to the current clinical research results, the longer you take statins, the greater the benefit.
Low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is the key raw material of atherosclerosis, and the level of LDL-C is closely related to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Statins can inhibit cholesterol synthesis and directly reduce LDL-C level.
Someone asked Hanako, if you don't eat meat and exercise more, can you not take medicine? Hanako said that most people need the help of drugs to effectively control LDL-C levels.
Because of the cholesterol in the human body, dietary sources only account for 20%~30%, and 70%~80% are self-synthesized. Dyslipidemia is actually a problem of lipid metabolism. Simple diet control has limited effect. Many patients adopt a vegan diet, and the LDL-C level will still exceed the standard. Therefore, most people need to take lipid-lowering drugs continuously to maintain LDL-C level.
The level of LDL-C is an important indicator of the high-risk population of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases with atherosclerosis and arterial stenosis. Studies have confirmed that the use of statins to fully reduce the level of LDL-C can reverse atherosclerotic plaques and reduce the degree of arterial stenosis.
The level of LDL-C in healthy people should be lower than 3.37 MMO/L; The level of LDL-C should be lower than 2.6 mmol/L in patients with hypertension, diabetes and hyperlipidemia, but without cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. The level of LDL-C should be lower than 65438 0.8 mmol/L in patients with cerebral infarction, myocardial infarction, coronary heart disease or diabetes and hypertension at the same time.
Taking statins can also increase the stability of plaque, reduce the probability of rupture and prevent the occurrence of acute cerebral infarction and myocardial infarction. However, it is a long-term process for statins to stabilize plaque and reverse plaque.
In related studies, when statins are used, the level of LDL-C should be at least reduced to 2.6mmol/L, and plaque reversal can only be observed after taking statins for more than 6 months. However, more people need to reduce the LDL-C level to 1.8mmol/L and continue taking the drug for 2~4 years before they can observe the reversal of plaque. Even some people need to reduce the LDL-C level below1.4 mmol/L. ..
In the current study, the longer you take statins, the greater the benefits you get from cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, so it is not recommended to stop using statins at will. However, after taking the medicine, by strictly adhering to a healthy lifestyle, if the LDL-C level is too low, you can consider reducing statins.
The way to reduce the dosage of statins is to "halve", for example, taking 20mg a day can be reduced to10 mg; ; The original daily dose 10mg can be reduced to 5mg. When statins are "doubled" or "halved", the effect on LDL-C level is only 6%. After adjusting the dose, the blood lipid was rechecked at the fifth week to confirm whether the LDL-C level could reach the standard.
However, serious adverse reactions occurred during the medication, such as transaminase (ALT, AST) exceeding the normal upper limit by 3 times, or creatine kinase (CK) exceeding the normal upper limit by 5 times, so it is necessary to stop taking the drug.
To sum up, the goal of taking statins is to stabilize plaque, reverse plaque and reduce the risk of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. However, it needs long-term medication, and LDL-C can be continuously controlled to reach the standard, thus achieving the purpose of medication. The current research also shows that the longer statins are taken, the better the protective effect on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. It is not recommended to stop taking statins, but when the LDL-C level is low, the reduction can be considered.
The use and adjustment of drugs need to be carried out under the guidance of doctors. If you have questions about medication, please consult a doctor or pharmacist. I'm Hanako, the pharmacist. Welcome to follow me and share more health knowledge.