Clinical studies have suggested that intensive lowering of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, the 'bad' cholesterol, benefits certain groups of patients with chronic diseases, such as diabetes. In a recent study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, scientists reported that aggressive LDL-cholesterol lowering significantly reduced major cardiovascular events in patients with a history of coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery.

The researchers evaluated 4,654 patients with prior CABG who were enrolled in the Treating to New Targets (TNT) trial. Approximately half of these patients were treated with 80 mg/day of atorvastatin, a lipid-lowering drug, while the other half were treated with the standard dose of 10 mg/day. These patients were followed for an average of almost 5 years. The researchers found that patients who were treated with the higher dose of atorvastatin had lower levels of LDL cholesterol (an average of 79 mg/dl compared to average of 101 mg/dl). The high-dose patients had 27% fewer cardiovascular events (for example, heart attack, stroke, and cardiac arrest) and 30% fewer coronary revascularization procedures (for example, repeat CABG or angioplasty).

Patients with previous CABG represent a population that is at high risk for future cardiovascular events, so intensive LDL-cholesterol lowering may reduce cardiac-related complications and death. In their conclusion, the researchers call for aggressive lipid-lowering with atorvastatin to be the new standard of care for patients with prior CABG.