Statins reduce OAG risk in hyperlipidemia

The use of statins has been linked to a significant decrease in open-angle glaucoma (OAG) risk in patients with hyperlipidemia, according to a study in the journal Ophthalmology.

Dr Joshua Stein, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA, led a retrospective, longitudinal cohort analysis including 524,109 hyperlipidemia patients.

The link between statin use the OAG development was determined by multivariable Cox regression analysis. It was also used to assess progression from a prior diagnosis of glaucoma suspect to OAG diagnosis and the requirement of medical ot operative interventions. The main outcome measures were hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

Of the patients investigated, 316,182 had more than one outpatient prescriptions for statins. The hazard of OAG progression was reduced by 0.3% for every additional month of statin administration.

Hyperlipidemia patients taking statins for two continuous years experienced an 8% deceased OAG risk, compared to those who did not receive statin therapy. The hazard of progressing from glaucoma suspect to OAG was reduced by 0.4% for every extra month of statin administration, compared to those who did not receive statin therapy. There were no differences between the groups in the need for glaucoma surgery amongst those with OAG who did not receive statins.

The abstract is available here .