"Statin drugs have been prescribed to millions of patients for close to 15 years and the recent decision to withdraw cerivastatin should not undermine confidence in the ability of statins to lower cholesterol safely and to achieve medical benefit," states Antonio M. Gotto, MD, DPhil, ILIB chairman and the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean, Professor of Medicine, Weill Medical College, Cornell University, New York. "Rather, this is the moment to reinforce the need for statins to remain an important part of treatment."
The focus of ILIB's efforts is to enhance the care of patients and to help decrease the world-wide burden of morbidity and mortality from coronary heart disease (CHD). As part of this mission, ILIB urges physicians to implement cholesterol treatment guidelines and to continue to prescribe statins with confidence for those patients most likely to benefit form this therapy.
Landmark clinical trials have shown that statins prevent CHD, heart attacks, revascularization, and strokes in CHD patients. In addition, new benefits beyond cholesterol lowering are emerging. Patients should talk to their doctor about their personal risk for heart disease, know their cholesterol levels and actively participate in goals that will reduce their risk.
Launched in 1987, ILIB includes leading investigators and clinicians in the field of dyslipidemia and CHD in eight countries: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the United States. The purpose of ILIB is to serve as a resource for physicians and other medical professionals, the media and the public. ILIB has published 2 editions of an authoritative, widely distributed (75,000 copies) handbook on the clinical management of dyslipidemia. ILIB is an independent organisation whose opinions represent those of its members. It is supported through an unrestricted educational grant from Pfizer Inc.