Lipitor cuts hospitalization costs for heart disease patients

US drug major Pfizer says that the 80mg formulation of its world leading stain Lipitor (atorvastatin calcium), lowered hospitalization costs by reducing the risk of cardiovascular events in patients with heart disease. The conclusion is based on analyses of the IDEAL and TNT trials, both of which were presented at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology meeting in New Orleans.

A post-hoc analysis of a subset of patients from the IDEAL study, those suffering acute coronary syndrome, showed that hospitalization costs were 21% lower for patients who received lipitor 80mg, compared with those treated with simvastatin at either a 20mg or 40mg dose ($6,427 versus $8,179). The firm said that the reduction was due to the lower risk of cardiovascular events that its product confers.

Data from the TNT study, specifically, from a 5,300 strong subgroup of patients with stable coronary heart disease, revealed that those taking Lipitor 80mg had better clinical outscomes compared with individuals receiving a 10mg dose of the drug. Pfizer added that the higher dose of the agent brought about a 15% reduction in cadiovascular hospitalizations and a 27% cut in revacularizations.