Statins Linked to Raised Risk of Cataracts

[ravip]

But heart benefits of these drugs are significant, expert says.

THURSDAY, Sept. 19 (HealthDay News) -- The statin medications that millions of adults take to lower their cholesterol levels may also raise their risk of developing cataracts, a new study suggests

http://archopht.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1739520

Edited October 4, 2013 by Sheryl
replaced link to lay media with the scientific study

[Thanyaburi Mac]

Cataracts are easily operable, heart disease less so. I've had the former and keep taking my daily Xanidine for the latter.

Mac

[Sheryl]

Please do not post links to non-scientific media, only ot the actual study itself (as aly medfia sometimes distorts things)

I have corrected the link accordingly.

Note that the odds ratio is 1.27, i.e. the risk of cataract is increased 27% in statin users. Not a very large effect, but statistically significant.

[Tolley]

Please do not post links to non-scientific media, only ot the actual study itself (as aly medfia sometimes distorts things)

I have corrected the link accordingly.

Note that the odds ratio is 1.27, i.e. the risk of cataract is increased 27% in statin users. Not a very large effect, but statistically significant.

Especially significant if you are one of the 27 percent .

[Jingthing]

Please do not post links to non-scientific media, only ot the actual study itself (as aly medfia sometimes distorts things)

I have corrected the link accordingly.

Note that the odds ratio is 1.27, i.e. the risk of cataract is increased 27% in statin users. Not a very large effect, but statistically significant.

Especially significant if you are one of the 27 percent .

Yep.

Also note that cataracts are linked to long term use of steroid asthma inhalers.

[partington]

Please do not post links to non-scientific media, only ot the actual study itself (as aly medfia sometimes distorts things)

I have corrected the link accordingly.

Note that the odds ratio is 1.27, i.e. the risk of cataract is increased 27% in statin users. Not a very large effect, but statistically significant.

Especially significant if you are one of the 27 percent .

That's not what the 27% increase means! It's a measure of probability, not a number of people! Odds ratio is a way of measuring risk.

What it means is this: say your absolute risk of getting cataracts is, (for explanatory purposes - I have no idea of the real risk), 1 in 100.

This means if you took a room of 100 random people one would get cataracts.

If all those people were taking statins the absolute risk would increase to 1.25 people in 100 getting cataracts (it's not 1.27 because odds and probability are not identical).

So to put it in whole numbers of people, if usually 4 in every 400 people get cataracts, if all those people were on statins this would increase to 5 people in every 400.

Edited October 4, 2013 by partington

[Tolley]

Please do not post links to non-scientific media, only ot the actual study itself (as aly medfia sometimes distorts things)

I have corrected the link accordingly.

Note that the odds ratio is 1.27, i.e. the risk of cataract is increased 27% in statin users. Not a very large effect, but statistically significant.

Especially significant if you are one of the 27 percent .

That's not what the 27% increase means! It's a measure of probability, not a number of people! Odds ratio is a way of measuring risk.

What it means is this: say your absolute risk of getting cataracts is, (for explanatory purposes - I have no idea of the real risk), 1 in 100.

This means if you took a room of 100 random people one would get cataracts.

If all those people were taking statins the absolute risk would increase to 1.25 people in 100 getting cataracts (it's not 1.27 because odds and probability are not identical).

So to put it in whole numbers of people, if usually 4 in every 400 people get cataracts, if all those people were on statins this would increase to 5 people in every 400.

Yes poor English on my part .

Nonetheless just another reason to avoid statins at all costs in my book along with all the other potential side effects too numerous to mention.

[Sheryl]

Thank you Partington for an excellent explanation. It is indeed just a 27% increase in probability.

Also, it is an association, not a proven causation. While the study tried to control for confounding factors there is a limit to the extent to which that is possible. For example, most people on statins are so because they had high levels of unhealthy lipids and they will have had that for some period of time before starting statins. The control group, not being on statins, will generally be people who never had very high levels of unhealthy lipids. It could be this rather than the meds that accounts for the small increased incidence of cataracts in the statin group for all we know. Correllation is not causation.

Which is not to day statins should be viewed casually. They are drugs and should be taken only when necessary and when the potential benefit outweighs the potential adverse effects. Certainly it is wisest to attempt first to control dyslipedemia by lifestyle modifications and to reserve drug use for cases where these measures alone do not suffice.

[MB1]

I've been taking warfarin and bisoprolol for over 4 years now due to a little problem with my heart, two years ago I was put on statins (Symvastatin) by my doctor after a yearly medical review of my health due to an increased level of cholestorol, against medical advice I decided not to take the statins.

After a year my next review was due and all the usual blood tests were taken and I then had an appointment a week later to discuss the results from the tests, the nurse said that my cholestorol level was perfect for a man of my age and she also said that it seemed that the statins prescribed were working for me..

The look on her face when I told her that I had never taken a single statin tablet in a year was quite amusing.

Maybe at the time I did need the tablets but it seems my body cleared up the problem all by itself without tablets, or maybe there wasn't a problem at all and just a little blip due to certain types of food I'd been eating at the time which had increased my cholestorol levels at the time of the test.

If you know what foods to keep clear of that are supposed to increase levels of cholestorol then you can reduce your levels without the use of statins.