6th Sep 2006 08:30
Lipitor More Effective Than Simvastatin in Cutting Risk of Additional Heart Attacks in Patients Who Had a Recent Heart Attack, New Data Suggests * Heart Disease Patients who Were at a Very High Risk for Having a Second Heart Attack and Took Lipitor 80mg Had a 46 Percent Reduction in the Risk of Experiencing Additional Heart Attacks Compared With Patients Taking Simvastatin * Investigator: 'These data suggest the benefit of intensive treatment with Lipitor 80mg in very high-risk heart attack patients.' NEW YORK, Sept. 6 -- Patients who had a recent heartattack and took Pfizer's Lipitor(R) (atorvastatin calcium) 80mg doseexperienced significantly fewer heart attacks than patients taking simvastatin20-40mg dose, according to results of a new analysis presented today at theWorld Congress of Cardiology in Barcelona, Spain. "Patients who have experienced a recent heart attack are at greater risk forexperiencing life-threatening, recurrent events," said Dr. Terje Pedersen, headof the Centre for Preventive Medicine at Ulleval University Hospital, Oslo,Norway, and the lead investigator for IDEAL. "These data suggest the benefit ofintensive treatment with Lipitor 80mg in very high-risk heart attack patients.Lipitor 80mg was also well-tolerated in these patients." Patients who took Lipitor 80mg dose had a 46 percent reduction in the risk ofexperiencing another heart attack, and a 34 percent reduction in the risk ofexperiencing major coronary events, which included heart attack, cardiac deathand cardiac arrest, compared with patients who took simvastatin 20-40mg dose.Lipitor 80mg also significantly reduced the risk of death, stroke, unstableangina and revascularization combined by 18 percent compared to simvastatin20-40mg. The safety profiles were similar between the two groups. This analysis was based on the IDEAL (Incremental Decrease in Endpoints ThroughAggressive Lipid Lowering) trial and was designed and conducted after the trialended. It represents the longest follow-up of patients with a recent heartattack on statin therapy. In IDEAL, 8,888 patients with coronary heart disease and moderately elevatedcholesterol levels were randomized to either Lipitor 80mg or simvastatin20-40mg and followed for an average of 4.8 years. These new findings are froman analysis of the 999 patients in IDEAL who experienced a heart attack lessthan two months prior to entering the study. "The often debilitating effects of a heart attack can place a tremendousphysical and emotional strain on patients and their families," said Dr. PeterGanz, associate professor of medicine, Harvard Medical School. "These findingsprovide new and important information about the potential benefit of intensivetreatment with Lipitor in the management of the risk of recurrent, potentiallylife-threatening cardiac events." Worldwide, heart disease is responsible for seven million deaths annually. Itis the single largest killer of Americans, causing one out of every fivedeaths. An estimated 865,000 people suffer a new or recurrent heart attack eachyear, according to data from the American Heart Association. The economic impact of heart attacks and strokes in the U.S. alone totalsnearly $403 billion in medical care and lost productivity annually. On anindividual level, heart attacks and strokes are often devastating experiencesfor the patient and his or her family. Preventing a heart attack means avoidinghospitalization, a long recovery period and weeks or months of lost work timeassociated with disability. "Lipitor is the only statin to show a significant benefit in these very highrisk heart disease patients, and has demonstrated greater benefits than bothsimvastatin and pravastatin in clinical trials studying these patients," saidDr. Joseph Feczko, Pfizer's chief medical officer. "These findings add to thewealth of clinical data that support the impressive efficacy and safety profileof Lipitor across the dose range." Since the introduction of Lipitor more than nine years ago, its safety andeffectiveness have been supported through an extensive clinical trial program,Atorvastatin Landmarks, with more than 400 ongoing and completed trialsinvolving more than 80,000 patients. Lipitor is the most prescribedcholesterol-lowering therapy in the world, with 121 million patient years ofexperience. IDEAL was an investigator-led trial sponsored by Pfizer. Important Information Lipitor is a prescription drug. It is used in patients with multiple riskfactors for heart disease, such as family history, high blood pressure, age,low HDL ("good" cholesterol), or smoking to reduce the risk of heart attack andstroke. When diet and exercise alone are not enough, Lipitor is used along witha low-fat diet and exercise to lower cholesterol. Lipitor is also used in patients with type 2 diabetes and at least one otherrisk factor for heart disease, such as high blood pressure, smoking orcomplications of diabetes, including eye disease and protein in urine, toreduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. Lipitor is not for everyone. It is not for those with liver problems. And it isnot for women who are nursing, pregnant or may become pregnant. If you take Lipitor, tell your doctor if you feel any new muscle pain orweakness. This could be a sign of rare but serious muscle side effects. Tellyour doctor about all medications you take. This may help avoid serious druginteractions. Your doctor should do blood tests to check your liver functionbefore and during treatment and may adjust your dose. The most common sideeffects are gas, constipation, stomach pain and heartburn. They tend to be mildand often go away. For more product information visit http://www.Lipitor.com or call1-888-LIPITOR. SOURCE Pfizer Inc. 09/06/2006 /CONTACT: Vanessa Aristide, Pfizer Inc., +1-917-697-0487 cell,+1-212-733-3784 office/ /Company News On-Call: Pfizer's press releases are available through PRNewswire's Company News On-Call service on PRN's Web Site. Visit http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/688250.html/ /Photo: A free corporate logo to accompany this story is available immediatelyvia Wieck Photo Database to any media with telephoto receiveror electronic darkroom, PC or Macintosh, that can accept overheadtransmissions. To retrieve a logo, please call 972-392-0888/ /Company News On-Call: http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/688250.html / /Web site: http://www.pfizer.com http://www.Lipitor.com / (PFE) ENDPFIZER INCRelated Shares:
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