A new study has raised new concerns about Zetia and Vytorin – drugs that are still taken by millions of Americans to lower cholesterol, despite questions raised last year about how well they work. In the study, Zetia failed to shrink buildup in artery walls while a rival drug, Niaspan, did so significantly. Zetia users also suffered more heart attacks and other problems although the numbers of these events are believed to be too small to draw firm conclusions on the risk at this stage.

Zetia has been on the market for about seven years. The results of the study were presented at an American Heart Association conference and were published by The New England Journal of Medicine last month. The study is too limited to warrant changing practices prescribing on its findings alone, many heart experts said. Patients also should not stop taking any heart medicine without checking with their doctors first, they warn. Our Mass Torts Section will monitor this situation.

Source: Associated Press