A drug that increases the good cholesterol reduces clogging of the arteries

A drug that the level of "good" cholesterol increased when taken in addition to the standard treatment of statins to lower bad cholesterol, reduce calcification of arteries and in patients with established heart disease, a study Oxford University has shown.

The results are published in the current issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

"This is the first clear evidence that therapy levels of good cholesterol, where in addition to taking statins increase their beneficial effect is," explains Dr. Robin Choudhury Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Oxford, who led the study. "With MRI, we have reduced the size of the artery wall in patients after one year of treatment with nicotinic acid showed.

"Our study is to identify imaging appears as a very promising prospects for treatment, and if the results are confirmed in larger studies courses, this could benefit many people around the world."

Heart disease is still the leading cause of death in the Western world, and atherosclerosis - the scale "lime up" or hardening of the arteries - is closely linked to later heart attacks and strokes.

The standard treatment of patients with atherosclerosis, statins are prescribed. These drugs are in reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke more effectively and work by lowering levels of "bad" cholesterol or low density lipoprotein (LDL) which might otherwise be deposited in the arteries obtained.

"Good" cholesterol or high density lipoprotein (HDL) is believed to eliminate the "bad cholesterol from the arteries and high levels of good cholesterol, lower risk of heart disease. It was thought that patients could receive other treatments to lower cholesterol good to increase these values, but so far there has been little evidence to support is.

Nicotinic acid, sometimes also called niacin, is one of the oldest drugs used to treat atherosclerosis and only fallen from grace of statins increased. It is known to increase levels of good cholesterol in the blood. Researchers at the Oxford Center for Clinical Magnetic Resonance Research (CRMO) have one of the largest groups have developed methods to MRI study of vascular disease. Thus the Oxford team, with colleagues at the University of Manchester, undertook to see if a high dose of nicotinic acid, statins also have an impact on the progression of atherosclerosis with MRI on changes in wall thickness of Measure A. carotid artery (the blood to the head and neck), and in particular the increase and other measures of large arteries and blood vessels function.

71 patients, all suffering from existing cardiovascular disease were prescribed statins and lower good cholesterol as their primary care physicians were randomized to receive either 2 g of nicotinic acid or placebo for 1 year. The MRI examinations were performed before 6 months and 12 months of the study.

After a year, was the size of the wall of carotid arteries in patients receiving nicotinic acid has been reduced compared to placebo. The area of the arterial wall had fallen on average by 1.1 mm ², while receiving placebo, saw an average increase of the wall of the carotid artery of 1.2 mm ².

Patients receiving nicotinic acid for 12 months an average increase of 23% of the levels of good cholesterol in the blood and lowering the "bad" cholesterol by 19%.

"For years we were always taught that atherosclerosis is an inexorable progression of the disease," says Dr Choudhury. "It's exciting to see a decline, based in atherosclerosis.

While this is evidence of a change that could be beneficial for patients, it does not show a large study of clinical outcomes, also taking statins niacin actually leads to fewer heart attacks, stroke and reduce mortality. But two of these studies with thousands of patients results in the coming years (including one from a group of Oxford led report) that a clearer picture of whether treatment should increase good cholesterol, to give strategies against heart disease added.

"Our results are very encouraging results because they showed potential benefits specific and will certainly strengthen the interest of the test results are larger than in the years to come, a report," says Dr Choudhury.