Statins in Healthy Adults: A Meta-Analysis

Background and Objectives: In this paper, we investigated the efficacy of statin therapy on cardiovascular disease (CVD) reduction in adults with no known underlying health conditions by undertaking a meta-analysis and systematic review of the current evidence. Materials and Methods: We performed a systematic search to identify Primary Prevention Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) that compared statins with a control group where CVD events or mortality were the primary end point. Identified RCTs were evaluated and classified into categories depending on relevance in order to determine which type of meta-analysis would be feasible. Results: No differences were observed between categories with the exception of relative risk for all CVD events combined which showed a 12% statistically significant difference favouring studies which were known to include participants without underlying health conditions. Strong negative correlations between number-need-to-treat (NNT) and LDL-C reduction were observed for all Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) outcomes combined and all CVD outcomes combined. Conclusions: This project highlights the need for further research on the effects of statins on participants who do not suffer from underlying health conditions, given that no such studies have been conducted.