This week’s JAMA has an enormous study that looks at chf patients and the use of statins. Data from ~25,000 patients with chf were analyzed for use of statin in the 120 days prior to the initial chf diagnosis. Mortality risk was significantly lower for statin users than nonusers (hazard ratio 0.79), as was hospitalization (hr 0.80). Findings did not change by etiology of chf or whether the patient had cad. The press is taking this study to mean all patients with chf should be on statins. However the observational nature of this study and the difficulty distinguishing the effect of the statin, vs. the effect of overall better care (statin being a surrogate marker for better care/better physician) make this study far from definitive. Oh and yes it was funded by industry…that being said prospective randomized studies should settle this issue.
