First link between cholesterol and kidney disease
The results are in from the world’s largest kidney disease trial of over 9,400 volunteers aged 40 or over with chronic kidney disease.
The Study of Heart and Renal Protection (SHARP) showed that a combination of the cholesterol-lowering drugs, ezetimibe and simvastatin, could reduce by a quarter, all heart attacks, strokes and operations to open blocked arteries in people with chronic kidney disease.
A spokesperson from SHARP said people with chronic kidney disease have a very high risk of developing heart diseases or stroke. Until now it has not been clear which treatments could reduce this risk.
Consequently it is likely that the SHARP results will result in cholesterol-lowing treatment being used extensively in this large group of high-risk people.
