PATIENTS taking statins prior to hospitalization substantially reduced their odds of in-hospital death and severe COVID-19, researchers found, confirming earlier findings. Statin drugs are frequently used to lower blood cholesterol levels and prevent cardiovascular disease.

A team of scientists from University of California San Diego School of Medicine published findings in PLOS ONE last week, analyzing anonymized records on over 10,500 hospitalized COVID-19 patients admitted across 104 U.S. hospitals between January-September 2020 and enrolled in the American Heart Association’s COVID-19 Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Registry. At the start of the pandemic, researchers speculated statins could act against COVID-19 through their “known anti-inflammatory effects and binding capabilities, which could potentially stop progression of the virus,” Lori Daniels, lead study author, professor and director of the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit at UC San Diego Health, wrote in a news release. Statins upregulate the ACE-2 receptor to convert angiotensin and control blood pressure, however ACE-2 is also a doorway for the virus causing COVID-19. Medications for cholesterol and high blood pressure help stabilize underlying diseases, and likely boost patients’ odds of recovering from COVID-19 disease, study authors said.

The patients were 66 on average, and most patients (71 percent) had high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, or both. Over 80 percent of all patients taking statins were also taking at least one drug to treat high blood pressure, and patients taking either class of medication or both were typically older, female and had a number of health issues. Results indicated patients taking a statin alone saw a 46 percent lower odds of death, and about 25 percent lower risk of developing severe COVID, versus patients on neither class of medication. Patients taking both a statin and anti-hypertensive dropped risk of death by 40 percent.

“As with any observational study, we cannot say for certain that the associations we describe between statin use and reduced severity of COVID-19 infection are definitely due to the statins themselves; however, we can now say with very strong evidence that they may play a role in substantially lowering a patient’s risk of death from COVID-19,” Daniels said.

In another development, a recent study from researchers at New York University found that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine may be less effective in battling COVID-19 variants than vaccines made by Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna. (SD-Agencies)