High exposure to statins decrease the risk of new-onset dementia

Abstract

Several studies have shown that statin users have a lower risk of new-onset dementia (NOD) compared nonusers. However, other studies have shown opposite results. In this study, we investigated the association between the use of statins and the development of NOD. This was a longitudinal cohort study using data from claim forms submitted to the Taiwanese Bureau of National Health Insurance. The study included patients with NOD and non-NOD subjects from January 2002 to December 2013. We estimated the hazard ratios (HRs) of NOD associated with statin use, whereas nonuser subjects were used as a reference group. A total of 19,522 NOD cases were identified in 100,610 hyperlipidemic patients during the study period. The risk of NOD, after adjusting for sex, age, comorbidities, and concurrent medication, was lower among statin users than nonusers (HR 0.95, 95% CI [confidence interval] 0.94–0.96; P < .001). The adjusted HRs for NOD were 1.53 (95% CI, 1.45–1.62), 0.63 (95% CI, 0.57–0.71), and 0.34 (95% CI, 0.30–0.38) when the cumulative defined daily doses ranged from 28 to 365, 366 to 730, and more than 730 relative to nonusers, respectively. We concluded that statin use is associated with a decreased NOD risk. The protective effect of statins for NOD seemed to be related to high exposure to statins. This study also highlights that high exposure to statins has a dose-response effect on lowering NOD risk.

Associations of Antihypertensive Medication Consumption and Drug-Drug Interaction with Statin and Metformin with Reduced Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias Risk among Hypertensive Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment using High Volume Claims Data

“…(Iadecola et al, 2016;Marcum et al, 2022;National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine et al, n.d.) There have been epidemiological and neuropathological studies on identifying potential outstanding modifiable risk factors of ADRD such as type Ⅱ diabetes mellitus (X. Li et al, 2015;Sun et al, 2020) and hypercholesterolemia (high cholesterol) (Feringa & van der Kant, 2021;Kivipelto et al, 2002;Launer et al, 2001;Varma et al, 2021), as well as studies using anti-diabetic (Herath et al, 2016;Moore et al, 2013;Orkaby et al, 2017;Samaras et al, 2020) or lipid-lowering drugs (Chang et al, 2019;Jick et al, 2000;Lee et al, 2020;Torrandell-Haro et al, 2020); (Zingel et al, 2021); (Galatti et al, 2006;King et al, 2003;Padala et al, 2006) to reduce the risk of ADRD, with mixed results. Recent studies have evaluated the combined effect of these drugs along with AHMs on cognitive decline.…”

Gender- and age-related differences of statin use on incident dementia in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: a Nationwide population-based cohort study

“…Statin therapy may also reduce the risk of dementia by reducing b-amyloid and serum apolipoprotein levels and exhibiting antithrombotic and anti-inflammatory effects [ 15 ]. Some observational studies have found a significant association between the use of statin and a reduced risk of dementia [ 16 , 17 ]; however, two clinical trials had failed to show its beneficial effects on cognitive function [ 18 , 19 ]. In fact, these studies presented inconsistent results.…”