The role of statins in the metabolic syndrome

Abstract

The so-called 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA (HMGCoA) reductase inhibitors, or the statins, represent a class of drugs that has been developed successfully over almost 30 years and are now widely used all over the world for cardiovascular prevention. The popularity of these drugs is based on the fact that not only they are clinically effective, but also some leading brands are now cheap when generics have been introduced. The statins can be classified into the drugs which are more effective per mg, such as rosuvastatin and atorvastatin, and the more common statins such as simvastatin, pravastatin, and fluvastatin. The first one, lovastatin, is not in use anymore. Newer drugs are being developed such as pivastatin, but one drug, cerivastatin, was withdrawn due to hepatotoxicity. All the statins use the same kind of metabolic mechanisms even if they differ in potency and pharmacological properties.