Lipitor Found More Effective Than Zocor

A new study has found Lipitor (atorvastatin, Pfizer) to be more effective than Zocor (simvastatin, Merck) in cutting the risk of additional heart attacks in patients who have had a recent heart attack.

The new findings are from an analysis of 999 patients participating in the Incremental Decrease in Endpoints through Aggressive lipid Lowering (IDEAL) study who experienced a heart attack less than two months prior to entering the study. Patients were randomized to either Lipitor 80 mg or Zocor 20-40 mg and followed for an average of 4.8 years. The analysis was designed and conducted after the IDEAL trial, which involved 8,888 patients with coronary heart disease and moderately elevated cholesterol levels who were treated at 190 centers in northern Europe.

Patients who took Lipitor 80 mg dose had a 46% reduction in the risk of experiencing another heart attack, and a 34% reduction in the risk of experiencing major coronary events, which included heart attack, cardiac death, and cardiac arrest, compared with patients who took Zocor 20-40 mg dose. Lipitor 80 mg also significantly reduced the risk of death, stroke, unstable angina, and revascularization combined by 18%, compared to Zocor 20-40 mg. The safety profiles were similar between the two groups. The results were presented at the World Congress of Cardiology, held in September 2006 in Barcelona (Spain).

"Patients who have experienced a recent heart attack are at greater risk for experiencing life-threatening, recurrent events,” said Dr. Terje Pedersen, head of the Center for Preventive Medicine at Ulleval University Hospital (Oslo, Norway), and lead investigator for the IDEAL trial. "These data suggest the benefit of intensive treatment with Lipitor 80 mg in very high-risk heart attack patients. Lipitor 80 mg was also well-tolerated in these patients.”



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Ulleval University Hospital