CLINICAL RESEARCH
Reduction in Ventricular Tachyarrhythmias With Statins in the Multicenter Automatic Defibrillator Implantation Trial (MADIT)-II
Anant K. Vyas, MD, MPH*,*,
Hongsheng Guo, MD ,
Arthur J. Moss, MD*,
Brian Olshansky, MD ,
Scott A. McNitt, MS*,
W. Jackson Hall, PhD ,
Wojciech Zareba, MD, PhD*,
Jonathan S. Steinberg, MD||,
Avi Fischer, MD||,
Jeremy Ruskin, MD¶,
Mark L. Andrews, BBA* for the MADIT-II Research Group
* Heart Research Follow-up Program of the Cardiology Unit of the Department of Medicine
Department of Biostatistics and Computational Biology, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York
Cardiac Electrophysiology Division, Park Nicollet Clinic, St. Louis Park, Minnesota
University of Iowa Hospitals, Iowa City, Iowa
|| Cardiology Division of the Department of Medicine, St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital Center and Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, New York
¶ Cardiology Division of the Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts
Manuscript received May 13, 2005;
revised manuscript received September 4, 2005,
accepted September 26, 2005.
* Reprint requests and correspondence: Dr. Anant K. Vyas, Heart Research Follow-up Program, University of Rochester Medical Center, 601 Elmwood Avenue, Box 653, Rochester, New York 14642
(Email: anantvyas{at}hotmail.com).
OBJECTIVES: We evaluated whether statins have anti-arrhythmic effects by exploring the association of statin use with appropriate implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) therapy for ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation (VT/VF) in the Multicenter Automatic Defibrillator Implantation Trial (MADIT)-II.
BACKGROUND: A few studies have suggested that lipid-lowering drugs may have anti-arrhythmic effects in patients with coronary artery disease.
METHODS: Patients receiving an ICD (n = 654; U.S. centers only) in the MADIT-II study were categorized by the percentage of days each patient received statins during follow-up (90% to 100%, n = 386; 11% to 89%, n = 116; and 0% to 10%, n = 152). The Kaplan-Meier method with significance testing by the log-rank statistic and time-dependent proportional hazards regression analysis were used to evaluate the effect of statin use on the probability of ICD therapy for the combined end point VT/VF or cardiac death and for the end point VT/VF.
RESULTS: The cumulative rate of ICD therapy for VT/VF or cardiac death, whichever occurred first, was significantly reduced in those with 90% statin usage compared to those with lower statin usage (p = 0.01). The time-dependent statin:no statin therapy hazard ratio was 0.65 (p < 0.01) for the end point of VT/VF or cardiac death and 0.72 (p = 0.046) for VT/VF after adjusting for relevant covariates.
CONCLUSIONS: Statin use in patients with an ICD was associated with a reduction in the risk of cardiac death or VT/VF, whichever occurred first, and was associated with a reduction in VT/VF episodes. These findings suggest that statins have anti-arrhythmic properties.
This article has been cited by other articles:

|
 |

|
 |
 
G. Z. Duray, J. Schmitt, S. Richter, C. W. Israel, and S. H. Hohnloser
Arrhythmic death in implantable cardioverter defibrillator patients: a long-term study over a 10 year implantation period
Europace,
November 1, 2009;
11(11):
1462 - 1468.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
E. M. Kanoupakis, E. G. Manios, and P. E. Vardas
Predicting future shocks in implantable cardioverter defibrillator recipients: the role of biomarkers
Europace,
November 1, 2009;
11(11):
1434 - 1439.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
H. Desai, W. S. Aronow, F. S. Tsai, C. Ahn, H. M. Lai, H. Amin, K. Gandhi, W. H. Frishman, M. Cohen, and C. Sorbera
Statins Reduce Appropriate Cardioverter-Defibrillator Shocks and Mortality in Patients With Heart Failure and Combined Cardiac Resynchronization and Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator Therapy
Journal of Cardiovascular Pharmacology and Therapeutics,
September 1, 2009;
14(3):
176 - 179.
[Abstract]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
H. Almroth, N. Hoglund, K. Boman, A. Englund, S. Jensen, B. Kjellman, P. Tornvall, and M. Rosenqvist
Atorvastatin and persistent atrial fibrillation following cardioversion: a randomized placebo-controlled multicentre study
Eur. Heart J.,
April 1, 2009;
30(7):
827 - 833.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
K. Ramasubbu, J. Estep, D. L. White, A. Deswal, and D. L. Mann
Experimental and clinical basis for the use of statins in patients with ischemic and nonischemic cardiomyopathy.
J. Am. Coll. Cardiol.,
January 29, 2008;
51(4):
415 - 426.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
H. H.H. Feringa, O. Schouten, S. E. Karagiannis, J. Brugts, A. Elhendy, E. Boersma, R. Vidakovic, M. R.H.M. van Sambeek, P. G. Noordzij, J. J. Bax, et al.
Intensity of Statin Therapy in Relation to Myocardial Ischemia, Troponin T Release, and Clinical Cardiac Outcome in Patients Undergoing Major Vascular Surgery
J. Am. Coll. Cardiol.,
October 23, 2007;
50(17):
1649 - 1656.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
H. Blangy, N. Sadoul, B. Dousset, A. Radauceanu, R. Fay, E. Aliot, and F. Zannad
Serum BNP, hs-C-reactive protein, procollagen to assess the risk of ventricular tachycardia in ICD recipients after myocardial infarction
Europace,
September 1, 2007;
9(9):
724 - 729.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
Y. G. Yap, T. Duong, J M. Bland, M. Malik, C. Torp-Pedersen, L. Kober, M. M Gallagher, and A J. Camm
Optimising the dichotomy limit for left ventricular ejection fraction in selecting patients for defibrillator therapy after myocardial infarction
Heart,
July 1, 2007;
93(7):
832 - 836.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
M.S. Kostapanos, E.N. Liberopoulos, J.A. Goudevenos, D.P. Mikhailidis, and M.S. Elisaf
Do statins have an antiarrhythmic activity?
Cardiovasc Res,
July 1, 2007;
75(1):
10 - 20.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
A. N. DeMaria, O. Ben-Yehuda, G. K. Feld, G. S. Ginsburg, B. H. Greenberg, W. Y.W. Lew, J. A.C. Lima, A. S. Maisel, J. Narula, D. J. Sahn, et al.
Highlights of the Year in JACC 2006
J. Am. Coll. Cardiol.,
January 30, 2007;
49(4):
509 - 527.
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|

|
 |

|
 |
 
A. K. Gehi, D. Mehta, and J. A. Gomes
Evaluation and Management of Patients After Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator Shock
JAMA,
December 20, 2006;
296(23):
2839 - 2847.
[Abstract]
[Full Text]
[PDF]
|
 |
|
|