According to a new study published in the December 7, 2022 online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. An intracerebral hemorrhage is caused by bleeding in the brain.
“Although statins have been shown to reduce the risk of stroke due to blood clots, conflicting research has been conducted on whether statin use increases or decreases the risk of stroke. person has a first intracerebral hemorrhage,” said study author David Gaist, MD, PhD, of the University of Southern Denmark in Odense and a fellow of the American Academy of Neurology. “For our study, we looked at the lobes and non-lobar areas of the brain to see if location was a factor in statin use and risk for a first intracerebral hemorrhage. We found that those who used a statin had a lower risk of this type of hemorrhagic stroke in both regions of the brain. The risk was even lower with long-term use of statins. »
The brain lobes area includes most of the brain, including the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes. The non-lobar area mainly includes the basal ganglia, thalamus, cerebellum, and brainstem.
For the study, researchers reviewed health records in Denmark and identified 989 people with an average age of 76 who had intracerebral hemorrhage in the lobe region of the brain. They were compared to 39,500 people who had not had this type of stroke and who were similar in age, sex and other factors.
They also looked at 1,175 people with an average age of 75 who had intracerebral hemorrhage in the non-lobar parts of the brain. They were compared with 46,755 people who did not have this type of stroke and who were similar in terms of age, sex and other factors.
The researchers used the prescription data to determine information about statin use.
Among all participants, 6.8% with stroke had been taking statins for five years or more, compared to 8.6% of those without stroke.
After adjusting for factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes and alcohol consumption, researchers found that people currently using statins had a 17% lower risk of having a stroke in the lobes of the brain. brain and a 16% lower risk of stroke in other areas of the brain. -areas of the lobes of the brain.
Longer statin use was associated with a lower risk of stroke in both brain regions. When using statins for more than five years, people had a 33% lower risk of having a stroke in the lobe region of the brain and a 38% lower risk of stroke in the non-lobar region of the brain.
“It’s reassuring news for people taking statins that these drugs appear to reduce the risk of hemorrhagic stroke as well as the risk of stroke due to blood clots,” Gaist added. “However, our research was conducted only on the Danish population, which is mainly made up of people of European descent. Further research should be conducted on other populations.”
The study was supported by the Novo Nordisk Foundation.
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Material provided by American Academy of Neurology. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.