Metabolic effects of fluvastatin extended release 80 mg and atorvastatin 20 mg in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and low serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels: a 4-month, prospective, open-label, randomized, blinded-end point (probe) trial

Comparative Lipid-Lowering/Increasing Efficacy of 7 Statins in Patients with Dyslipidemia, Cardiovascular Diseases, or Diabetes Mellitus: Systematic Review and Network Meta-Analyses of 50 Randomized Controlled Trials

OBJECTIVE

The drug efficacy may differ among different statins, and evidence from head-to-head comparisons is sparse and inconsistent. The study is aimed at comparing the lipid-lowering/increasing effects of 7 different statins in patients with dyslipidemia, cardiovascular diseases, or diabetes mellitus by conducting systematic review and network meta-analyses (NMA) of the lipid changes after certain statins' use.

METHODS

In this study, we searched four electronic databases for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) published through February 25, 2020, comparing the lipid-lowering efficacy of no less than two of the included statins (or statin vs. placebo). Three reviewers independently extracted data in duplicate. Firstly, mixed treatment overall comparison analyses, in the form of frequentist NMAs, were conducted using STATA 15.0 software. Then, subgroup analyses were conducted according to different baseline diseases. At last, sensitivity analyses were conducted according to age and follow-up duration. The trial was registered with PROSPERO (number CRD42018108799).

RESULTS

As a result, seven statin monotherapy treatments in 50 studies (51956 participants) were used for the analyses. The statins included simvastatin (SIM), fluvastatin (FLU), atorvastatin (ATO), rosuvastatin (ROS), lovastatin (LOV), pravastatin (PRA), and pitavastatin (PIT). In terms of LDL-C lowering, rosuvastatin ranked 1st with a surface under cumulated ranking (SUCRA) value of 93.1%. The comparative treatment efficacy for LDL-C lowering was ROS>ATO>PIT>SIM>PRA>FLU>LOV>PLA. All of the other ranking and NMA results were reported in SUCRA plots and league tables.

CONCLUSIONS

According to the NMAs, it can be concluded that rosuvastatin ranked 1st in LDL-C, ApoB-lowering efficacy and ApoA1-increasing efficacy. Lovastatin ranked 1st in TC- and TG-lowering efficacy, and fluvastatin ranked 1st in HDL-C-increasing efficacy. The results should be interpreted with caution due to some limitations in our review. However, they can provide references and evidence-based foundation for drug selection in both statin monotherapies and statin combination therapies.

Fluvastatin Sodium Ameliorates Obesity through Brown Fat Activation

Brown adipose tissue (BAT), an organ that burns energy through uncoupling thermogenesis, is a promising therapeutic target for obesity. However, there are still no safe anti-obesity drugs that target BAT in the market. In the current study, we performed large scale screening of 636 compounds which were approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to find drugs that could significantly increase uncoupling protein 1 (UCP1) mRNA expression by real-time PCR. Among those UCP1 activators, most of them were antibiotics or carcinogenic compounds. We paid particular attention to fluvastatin sodium (FS), because as an inhibitor of the cellular hydroxymethyl glutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase, FS has already been approved for treatment of hypercholesteremia. We found that in the cellular levels, FS treatment significantly increased UCP1 expression and BAT activity in human brown adipocytes. Consistently, the expression of oxidative phosphorylation-related genes was significantly increased upon FS treatment without differences in adipogenic gene expression. Furthermore, FS treatment resisted to high-fat diet (HFD)-induced body weight gain by activating BAT in the mice model. In addition, administration of FS significantly increased energy expenditure, improved glucose homeostasis and ameliorated hepatic steatosis. Furthermore, we reveal that FS induced browning in subcutaneous white adipose tissue (sWAT) known to have a beneficial effect on energy metabolism. Taken together, our results clearly demonstrate that as an effective BAT activator, FS may have great potential for treatment of obesity and related metabolic disorders.

Fluvastatin for lowering lipids

BACKGROUND

Fluvastatin is thought to be the least potent statin on the market, however, the dose-related magnitude of effect of fluvastatin on blood lipids is not known.

OBJECTIVES

Primary objectiveTo quantify the effects of various doses of fluvastatin on blood total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL cholesterol), high-density lipoprotein (HDL cholesterol), and triglycerides in participants with and without evidence of cardiovascular disease.Secondary objectivesTo quantify the variability of the effect of various doses of fluvastatin.To quantify withdrawals due to adverse effects (WDAEs) in randomised placebo-controlled trials.

SEARCH METHODS

The Cochrane Hypertension Information Specialist searched the following databases for randomised controlled trials up to February 2017: the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (2017, Issue 1), MEDLINE (1946 to February Week 2 2017), MEDLINE In-Process, MEDLINE Epub Ahead of Print, Embase (1974 to February Week 2 2017), the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, CDSR, DARE, Epistemonikos and ClinicalTrials.gov. We also contacted authors of relevant papers regarding further published and unpublished work. No language restrictions were applied.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomised placebo-controlled and uncontrolled before and after trials evaluating the dose response of different fixed doses of fluvastatin on blood lipids over a duration of three to 12 weeks in participants of any age with and without evidence of cardiovascular disease.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Two review authors independently assessed eligibility criteria for studies to be included, and extracted data. We entered data from placebo-controlled and uncontrolled before and after trials into Review Manager 5 as continuous and generic inverse variance data, respectively. WDAEs information was collected from the placebo-controlled trials. We assessed all trials using the 'Risk of bias' tool under the categories of sequence generation, allocation concealment, blinding, incomplete outcome data, selective reporting, and other potential biases.

MAIN RESULTS

One-hundred and forty-five trials (36 placebo controlled and 109 before and after) evaluated the dose-related efficacy of fluvastatin in 18,846 participants. The participants were of any age with and without evidence of cardiovascular disease, and fluvastatin effects were studied within a treatment period of three to 12 weeks. Log dose-response data over doses of 2.5 mg to 80 mg revealed strong linear dose-related effects on blood total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol and a weak linear dose-related effect on blood triglycerides. There was no dose-related effect of fluvastatin on blood HDL cholesterol. Fluvastatin 10 mg/day to 80 mg/day reduced LDL cholesterol by 15% to 33%, total cholesterol by 11% to 25% and triglycerides by 3% to 17.5%. For every two-fold dose increase there was a 6.0% (95% CI 5.4 to 6.6) decrease in blood LDL cholesterol, a 4.2% (95% CI 3.7 to 4.8) decrease in blood total cholesterol and a 4.2% (95% CI 2.0 to 6.3) decrease in blood triglycerides. The quality of evidence for these effects was judged to be high. When compared to atorvastatin and rosuvastatin, fluvastatin was about 12-fold less potent than atorvastatin and 46-fold less potent than rosuvastatin at reducing LDL cholesterol. Very low quality of evidence showed no difference in WDAEs between fluvastatin and placebo in 16 of 36 of these short-term trials (risk ratio 1.52 (95% CI 0.94 to 2.45).

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

Fluvastatin lowers blood total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol and triglyceride in a dose-dependent linear fashion. Based on the effect on LDL cholesterol, fluvastatin is 12-fold less potent than atorvastatin and 46-fold less potent than rosuvastatin. This review did not provide a good estimate of the incidence of harms associated with fluvastatin because of the short duration of the trials and the lack of reporting of adverse effects in 56% of the placebo-controlled trials.

Lipid-lowering efficacy of atorvastatin

BACKGROUND

This represents the first update of this review, which was published in 2012. Atorvastatin is one of the most widely prescribed drugs and the most widely prescribed statin in the world. It is therefore important to know the dose-related magnitude of effect of atorvastatin on blood lipids.

OBJECTIVES

Primary objective To quantify the effects of various doses of atorvastatin on serum total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol and triglycerides in individuals with and without evidence of cardiovascular disease. The primary focus of this review was determination of the mean per cent change from baseline of LDL-cholesterol. Secondary objectives • To quantify the variability of effects of various doses of atorvastatin.• To quantify withdrawals due to adverse effects (WDAEs) in placebo-controlled randomised controlled trials (RCTs).

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (Issue 11, 2013), MEDLINE (1966 to December Week 2 2013), EMBASE (1980 to December Week 2 2013), Web of Science (1899 to December Week 2 2013) and BIOSIS Previews (1969 to December Week 2 2013). We applied no language restrictions.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomised controlled and uncontrolled before-and-after trials evaluating the dose response of different fixed doses of atorvastatin on blood lipids over a duration of three to 12 weeks.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Two review authors independently assessed eligibility criteria for studies to be included and extracted data. We collected information on withdrawals due to adverse effects from placebo-controlled trials.

MAIN RESULTS

In this update, we found an additional 42 trials and added them to the original 254 studies. The update consists of 296 trials that evaluated dose-related efficacy of atorvastatin in 38,817 participants. Included are 242 before-and-after trials and 54 placebo-controlled RCTs. Log dose-response data from both trial designs revealed linear dose-related effects on blood total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and triglycerides. The Summary of findings table 1 documents the effect of atorvastatin on LDL-cholesterol over the dose range of 10 to 80 mg/d, which is the range for which this systematic review acquired the greatest quantity of data. Over this range, blood LDL-cholesterol is decreased by 37.1% to 51.7% (Summary of findings table 1). The slope of dose-related effects on cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol was similar for atorvastatin and rosuvastatin, but rosuvastatin is about three-fold more potent. Subgroup analyses suggested that the atorvastatin effect was greater in females than in males and was greater in non-familial than in familial hypercholesterolaemia. Risk of bias for the outcome of withdrawals due to adverse effects (WDAEs) was high, but the mostly unclear risk of bias was judged unlikely to affect lipid measurements. Withdrawals due to adverse effects were not statistically significantly different between atorvastatin and placebo groups in these short-term trials (risk ratio 0.98, 95% confidence interval 0.68 to 1.40).

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

This update resulted in no change to the main conclusions of the review but significantly increases the strength of the evidence. Studies show that atorvastatin decreases blood total cholesterol and LDL-cholesterol in a linear dose-related manner over the commonly prescribed dose range. New findings include that atorvastatin is more than three-fold less potent than rosuvastatin, and that the cholesterol-lowering effects of atorvastatin are greater in females than in males and greater in non-familial than in familial hypercholesterolaemia. This review update does not provide a good estimate of the incidence of harms associated with atorvastatin because included trials were of short duration and adverse effects were not reported in 37% of placebo-controlled trials.

Lipid lowering efficacy of atorvastatin

BACKGROUND

Atorvastatin is one of the most widely prescribed drugs and the most widely prescribed statin in the world. It is therefore important to know the dose-related magnitude of effect of atorvastatin on blood lipids.

OBJECTIVES

To quantify the dose-related effects of atorvastatin on blood lipids and withdrawals due to adverse effects (WDAE).

SEARCH METHODS

We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) on The Cochrane Library Issue 4, 2011, MEDLINE (1966 to November 2011), EMBASE (1980 to November 2011), ISI Web of Science (1899 to November 2011) and BIOSIS Previews (1969 to November 2011). No language restrictions were applied.

SELECTION CRITERIA

Randomised controlled and uncontrolled before-and-after trials evaluating the dose response of different fixed doses of atorvastatin on blood lipids over a duration of 3 to 12 weeks.

DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS

Two review authors independently assessed trial quality and extracted data. WDAE information was collected from the placebo-controlled trials.

MAIN RESULTS

Two hundred fifty-four trials evaluated the dose-related efficacy of atorvastatin in 33,505 participants. Log dose-response data revealed linear dose-related effects on blood total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol and triglycerides. Combining all the trials using the generic inverse variance fixed-effect model for doses of 10 to 80 mg/day resulted in decreases of 36% to 53% for LDL-cholesterol. There was no significant dose-related effects of atorvastatin on blood high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol. WDAE were not statistically different between atorvastatin and placebo for these short-term trials (risk ratio 0.99; 95% confidence interval 0.68 to 1.45).

AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS

Blood total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol and triglyceride lowering effect of atorvastatin was dependent on dose. Log dose-response data was linear over the commonly prescribed dose range. Manufacturer-recommended atorvastatin doses of 10 to 80 mg/day resulted in 36% to 53% decreases of LDL-cholesterol. The review did not provide a good estimate of the incidence of harms associated with atorvastatin because of the short duration of the trials and the lack of reporting of adverse effects in 37% of the placebo-controlled trials.

Effects of fluvastatin slow-release (XL 80 mg) versus simvastatin (20 mg) on the lipid triad in patients with type 2 diabetes

The lipid triad is the association of small, dense (sd) low-density lipoprotein (LDL), low high-density lipoprotein (HDL), and hypertriglyceridemia, all of which play a role in coronary artery disease in patients with type 2 diabetes. Although statins have demonstrated clear positive effects on cardiovascular morbidity/mortality in patients with diabetes and on single components of the lipid triad, it remains controversial whether they affect all components of the triad in these patients. Therefore, we performed a single-center, parallel-group, prospective, randomized, open-label, blinded-endpoint (PROBE)-type comparison of fluvastatin extended-release (XL) 80 mg (n=48) and simvastatin 20 mg (n=46), each given once daily for 2 months to patients with type 2 diabetes with the lipid triad, who were enrolled after a 1-month lifestyle modification and dietary intervention program. After fluvastatin therapy, LDL (-51%; P<.01), apolipoprotein B (ApoB; -33%; P<.01), intermediate-density LDL (idLDL) (-14.3%; P<.05), sdLDL (-45%; P<.01), and triglycerides (-38%; P<.01) were significantly decreased, and HDL (+14.3%; P<.05) and apolipoprotein A-I (ApoA-I; +7%; P<.05) were increased; large buoyant (lb) LDL did not change (P=NS). Simvastatin therapy decreased LDL (-55.1%; P<.01), ApoB (-46%; P<.01), lbLDL (-33.3%; P<.05), idLDL (-22.7%; P<.05), sdLDL (-33.3%; P<.05), and triglycerides (-47.9%; P<.01); HDL was not changed (P=NS) after simvastatin, but ApoA-I was increased (+11.3%; P<.01). HDL increases (P<.01) and sdLDL decreases (P<.01) were significantly greater after fluvastatin compared with simvastatin therapy; LDL, triglycerides, ApoB, and idLDL changes were similar after both therapies (P=NS), and lbLDL decreases were greater with simvastatin therapy (P<.05). With both treatments, classic mean LDL and ApoB target levels were achieved in most patients. We conclude that the lipid triad can be controlled with fluvastatin XL 80 mg in patients with type 2 diabetes.