Data from the TRACE RA trial (n = 3,002; median follow-up 2.5 years) suggest that atorvastatin 40 mg daily is safe and reduces LDL cholesterol in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), but whether the statin therapy prevents major cardiovascular events (CVEs) remains unclear as the trial was terminated early owing to an unexpectedly low rate of CVEs. At the end of the study, mean LDL-cholesterol concentrations were 0.77 mmol/l lower in patients allocated to receive atorvastatin than in those who received placebo (P < 0.0001). 24 (1.6%) patients in the atorvastatin group experienced a major CVE, compared with 36 (2.4%) in the placebo group (HR 0.66; 95% CI, 0.39–1.11, P = 0.115).
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Kitas, G. D. et al. Trial of atorvastatin for the primary prevention of cardiovascular events in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (TRACE RA): a multicenter, randomized, placebo controlled trial. Arthritis Rheumatol. https://doi.org/10.1002/art.40892 (2019)
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Onuora, S. Daily atorvastatin safe for patients with RA. Nat Rev Rheumatol 15, 318 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41584-019-0229-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41584-019-0229-3