Lipitor cuts stroke in patients with ACS; MIRACL

Patients treated with Pfizer's HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor Lipitor(atorvastatin) on admission to hospital for an acute coronary syndrome are 59% less likely to suffer a non-fatal stroke in the subsequent four months, according to new results from the MIRACL (Myocardial Ischemia Reduction with Aggressive Cholesterol Lowering) study, which have been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (April 4).

Initial results of the MIRACL study were presented at the American Heart Association annual meeting last year, and showed that ACS patients treated with Lipitor achieved a 16% reduction in the risk of the primary endpoint of death, non-fatal acute myocardial infarction, cardiac arrest with resuscitation or recurrent myocardial ischemia requiring rehospitalization.

Lead investigator Gregory Schwartz of Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center noted that the scale of the reduction and the rapidity in which it was apparent was unexpected, especially as the patients were enrolled with warning symptoms of a heart attack, not stroke. The reduction was also seen in patients regardless of age, gender, baseline cholesterol levels and other risk factors, such as hypertension and diabetes.