It's enough to give us a headache. Aspirin and statins can be an effective preventive regimen and treatment for patients suffering from peripheral arterial disease (PAD) inadequate circulation to the legs and feet, commonly caused by fatty deposits but too many aren't being prescribed the treatment, a new study has found. PAD causes pain in the legs upon walking, relieved by rest.
About two-thirds of patients were getting both aspirin and a statin upon admission to the hospital for elective surgical treatment of the PAD, the study found. Those who were taking both agents were half as likely to have an adverse outcome six months later such as surgery or amputation, the study found.
P. Michael Grossman, MD, and colleagues used a Blue Cross Blue Shield database to analyze medical records for 1,357 patients for the study, published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Interventions.
ACSH's Dr. Elizabeth Whelan points out that at discharge, only 92 percent of patients were using aspirin and 81 percent were taking statins. Just 77 percent were using both. Those numbers should be at 100 percent, except for the small number of patients who are allergic to aspirin or shouldn't be taking statins.
"It's a real missed opportunity," she added.
