Heart diseases remain the leading cause of death worldwide. People often start treatment only after their condition has become serious—such as after a blocked artery or a heart attack. However, new research now shows that if treatment is started early and more effectively, these risks can be prevented before they occur.
Heart related complications can be reduced
A new study from Massachusetts General Brigham in the US—published in *JAMA* and presented at the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session—shows that a drug called evolocumab can significantly reduce the risk of a first major cardiovascular event in high-risk diabetic patients, even if they still have no clear signs of artery disease. Are not visible.
Why does the risk increase?
Our heart depends on clean and open blood vessels to deliver oxygen throughout the body. However, over time, a substance called “plaque” begins to accumulate inside the walls of the arteries—a process called atherosclerosis. As this congestion grows, blood flow can be restricted, increasing the risk of heart attack or stroke. A major contributing factor to this process is LDL—commonly known as “bad” cholesterol. For a long time, doctors have been using statin drugs to lower these levels. Although these drugs are effective, they do not always achieve sufficient reduction in high-risk patients.
Rise of new options
This is where new options, such as evolocumab, come into play. It is a PCSK9 inhibitor drug that works differently from statins and can reduce LDL cholesterol levels by about 60 percent. Until now, its use has been limited mainly to patients who already have heart disease. This study investigated whether giving the drug earlier—that is, before the disease reaches a severe stage—could effectively prevent the onset of cardiovascular complications. For the study, 3,655 high-risk diabetic patients were included—people who had long-standing diabetes, insulin dependence, or damage to small blood vessels, yet had no obvious signs of atherosclerosis.
After about a year, results showed that LDL cholesterol levels dropped by about 51 percent in people who took evolocumab. However, its real impact came in the long run. During a follow-up period of about five years, it was observed that people who used the drug reduced their risk of having a first heart attack, stroke or death from cardiovascular causes by 31 percent.
