PLANS for the mass prescription of statins should be shelved
after a study linked the drug to Parkinson’s disease, an expert last night
warned.
Published: 08:43, Sun, March 8, 2015
OVOLABS_4 END
statins
Dr Kailash Chand, deputy chairman of the British Medical
Association, was speaking following research which found those who take the
cholesterol-lowering drugs are more than twice as likely to develop Parkinson’s
disease in later life than those who do not.
A study last week showed statin use increases the risk of
diabetes by 46 per cent.
It has led to calls to end to the widespread use of the drugs.
The risks of side-effects of these drugs are far greater than
any potential benefits and it is high time these drugs were restricted in the
low-risk population
Dr Kailash Chand
The Parkinson’s research carried out over 20 years, and
involving nearly 16,000 people, suggests cholesterol may have a vital role in
protecting the brain and nervous system.
The findings have alarmed experts who say if applied to the
number of Britons deemed eligible for statins it could equate to 150,000 extra
patients with Parkinson’s, a central nervous system disorder affecting one in
350 mostly older people.
The work has also fuelled concerns that statins, now recommended
for up to half the adult population over 50 by government drug policy adviser
the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, may be doing many
patients more harm than good.
Doctors used to prescribe the drugs only to those who had a 30
per cent or greater risk of suffering a heart attack within a decade, but this
was lowered to 20 per cent in 2005.
A 10-year plan has been introduced to reduce this further and
include low-risk patients who have just a 10 per cent chance of a heart attack
within a decade.
Nice believes this could save thousands of lives.
Other studies have shown a link between the cholesterol-lowering
drugs and potentially disabling side effects including cataracts, diabetes,
muscle pains, fatigue and memory loss.
Researchers warn that the mass roll-out of statins leaves
150,000 people at risk
Dr Chand, who suffered debilitating muscle pains while taking
statins, said of the Parkinson’s research: “This research has been done over a
considerable amount of time and on a considerable number of people and it is
very worrying.”
Speaking in a personal capacity, he added: “The risks of
side-effects of these drugs are far greater than any potential benefits and it
is high time these drugs were restricted in the low-risk population and only
given to people with existing heart disease.”
Dr Xuemei Huang, who led the research on the link with
Parkinson’s disease, recently published in the journal of Movement Disorders,
expressed concerns about the widespread prescription of statins.
The professor of neurology at Penn State College of Medicine in
Pennsylvania said: “If we blanket prescribe statins to people we could be
creating a huge population of people with neurological problems.
“Does mother nature create cholesterol for a reason?
"I think doctors are over-enamoured with statins and think
it is a cure-all.
“But the body is not just for the heart, it is also for the
brain.
"It is potentially harmful for these drugs to be given out
so widely and randomly.”
Last
year leading doctors’ magazine Pulse revealed two-thirds of GPs are
disregarding Nice advice to offer statins to more patients.
http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/health/562600/Parkinsons-link-statins-mass-use-drug-risk-thousands-developing-nerve-disease
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http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/health/562600/Parkinsons-link-statins-mass-use-drug-risk-thousands-developing-nerve-disease
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