RESEARCH - Vytorin (ezetimibe and simvastatin) results disappointing, experts say don't panic

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Vytorin Results Disappointing, Experts Say Don't Panic

MedicalNewsToday.com

Article Date: 16 Jan 2008 - 3:00 PST

The American College of Cardiology (ACC) has issued a statement yesterday,

15th January, asking patients taking the cholesterol busting drugs Zetia

(ezetimibe) and Vytorin (ezetimibe and simvastatin combined) not to panic

and to talk to their doctors about the impact of the disappointing trial

results on their treatment.

The statement follows news released on Monday, 14th January, by drug

companies Merck and Schering-Plough Pharmaceuticals, that the ENHANCE trial

testing the effect of Vytorin (ezetimibe and simvastatin combined) against

an older drug, now available in generic form, Zocor (simvastatin alone),

showed that the combination drug Vytorin, which is quite expensive, was no

better at reducing artery clogging than the older and cheaper statin.

ENHANCE stands for Effect of Combination Ezetimibe and High-Dose Simvastatin

vs. Simvastatin Alone on the Atherosclerotic Process in Patients with

Heterozygous Familial Hypercholesterolemia.

The ACC said the study deserves " serious thought and follow-up " . The overall

rate of cardiac events was nearly the same in both drug groups, and both

drugs were generally well tolerated, they said. The differences in mean

change in the intima-media thickness (IMT) between the Zocor (simvastatin)

and Vytorin (ezetimibe and simvastatin) group was 0.006 versus 0.011 mm. IMT

is a measure of the thickness of artery walls, and changes in this measure

shows how much plaque has built up.

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