Higher death rates in patients not taking heart medications

People who don’t take their heart medications as prescribed are at a higher risk of dying from heart disease, according to a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Cardiology.

The study, led by researchers at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, looked at more than 340,000 patients who took statins for heart disease. The study found that patients who followed doctor’s orders lived longer than those who were not as complaint.

“When taken as prescribed, there is no question that statins save lives,” says Thomas Lalonde, chief of cardiology at Ascension St. John Hospital in Detroit. “Statins play a key role in lowering the risk of having a heart attack or stroke. The results of this study reinforce the importance of patients taking their heart medications as prescribed by their doctor.”

The patients in this study were treated in the Veterans Affairs Heath System in California, between January 1, 2013 to April of 2014. According to the study, patients taking a moderate regimen of statins were more likely to be more compliant than patients taking high intensity statin therapy. The study also shows that women, minorities, and adults under the age of 65 were less likely to take their statin medications as prescribed.

For more information about treatments for heart disease at an Ascension hospital near you, call 1-866-501-3627.