Crestor still the doctors’ choice
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Concerned patients have been calling their doctor to discontinue the drug after learning that a study conducted in Singapore had shown twice as high a concentration of Crestor in the blood of Asian patients compared to Caucasians on the same dosage.
Patients have no cause for worry, however, said Dr Arthur Tan, senior consultant cardiologist at Gleneagles Hospital.
“The adverse publicity surrounding Crestor has caused patients some anxiety. But it is a highly effective drug with a safety profile that is comparable to other statins,” he said.
Nor is it advisable for patients to discontinue the drug when their cholesterol levels are not adequately controlled, said Dr Terrance Chua, the head of cardiology at the National Heart Centre.
AstraZeneca’s regional medical director Asia Pacific, Dr Ross Horsburgh, clarified yesterday that the increase of Crestor in blood levels does not result in an increase in side effects in Asian patients.
“This is not supported by any clinical trial results or observation of the drug being used among people of Asian origin,” Dr Horsburgh said.
According to AstraZeneca, which produces Crestor, almost 200,000 Asian patients are using or have used Crestor in different dosages.
“Despite this, reports of significant side effects are rare and similar to those among Caucasians. More specifically, the incidence of rhabdomyolysis, a muscle-wasting disease linked to higher dosages of all statins, is extremely rare in Asians, again at similar levels to non-Asians and to those seen with other marketed statins,” Dr Horsburgh said.
Crestor was in the news earlier this month, when the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a change in the Crestor label to recommend that US doctors prescribe a lower dose for Asian patients.
This was based on a study of Asians living in the US, in whom Crestor levels were found to be twice as high as those in a Caucasian control group.
A 5mg dose of Crestor is now recommended as the start dose for Asian patients. The FDA also encouraged caution, especially at the highest dose of 40mg.
In Singapore, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) made similar moves in July last year following the findings of a local study completed in June 2003.
The HSA recommended a start dose of 10mg a day for Asian patients here. – The Straits Times/ANN
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