THE USE OF ALTERNATE-DAY LOVASTATIN IN HYPERCHOLESTEROLEMIC MEN

OBJECTIVE: To quantitate the therapeutic effects of alternate-day lova statin on serum lipoprotein values in a small group of men with primar y hypercholesterolemia. DESIGN: Retrospective review of medical, pharm acy, and laboratory records. A paired Student's t-test was performed o n absolute changes in lipoprotein values with an a priori p value less than or equal to 0.05 being statistically significant. SETTING: A lip id clinic within a tertiary care Department of Veterans Affairs Medica l Center. PATIENTS: Twenty men (mean age 62.5 +/- 8.3 y) with mean +/- SD baseline low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) concentration of 161.3 +/- 21.9 mg/dL and triglyceride concentrations below 400 mg/ dL. INTERVENTION: All patients had been prescribed lovastatin 20 mg ev ery other day. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The mean absolute and percent ch anges in lipoprotein values from baseline for patients receiving lovas tatin 20 mg every other day and the percentage of patients attaining a target mean LDL-C concentration as defined by the National Cholestero l Education Panel Adult Treatment Panel II guidelines. RESULTS: Mean /- SD total cholesterol and LDL-C were significantly reduced by 32.4 /- 17.8 (14.0% +/- 7.8%) and 34.1 +/- 14.6 mg/dL (21.5% +/- 9.7%), res pectively. No significant changes were seen in high- density lipoprote in cholesterol or triglycerides. Four of 20 patients (20%) attained a goal LDL-C concentration. CONCLUSIONS: Lovastatin 20 mg every other da y may effectively lower LDL-C in some elderly men, and target LDL-C co ncentrations may be obtained in some patients.