Common heart pill under scrutiny for older patients as study weighs risks of stopping
"One study suggested quality of life improvements after stopping statins," Redberg said, adding that her team explored whether stopping was safe for older adults taking the drugs to prevent a first cardiovascular event.
Key points
- After two years, the added risk from stopping statins was small enough to fall within the limits researchers had set for the study.
- The study’s safety monitoring board also recommended that participants who were assigned to stop statins discuss restarting treatment with their healthcare team, according to the American College of Cardiology.
- Longer follow-up is needed to determine how stopping statins affects patients over many years.
The findings also may not apply to all older adults, as the study was limited to people aged 70 and older who had multiple chronic health conditions but no history of heart disease or stroke.
Additional details
- "This small, increased risk of cardiovascular events means that one cannot make a general recommendation about stopping statins in this patient population," Redberg said.
- CLICK HERE FOR MORE HEALTH STORIES Although some participants were followed for up to four years, the study primarily assessed outcomes over about two years.
- 7, 2026, at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions in Chicago, and published in The New England Journal of Medicine.
- They are known to help reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke, according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
- Earlier studies found no difference in mortality after adults 70 and older stopped statins for primary prevention, she noted.
How this summary was made: extractive summary — built from the sources' own reporting. It is drawn only from the reporting of the sources listed below — read the originals for full detail. How we summarize →
Advertisement
Every article behind this summary — 1 article from 1 outlet
Get stories like this in your inbox.
Subscribe — it's freeOne free email at 6am — your topics, deduplicated, five minutes. No account, no paywall.