Polypill could halve risk of heart attack and stroke
Healthy people who take a daily ‘polypill’ combining a statin, aspirin and three drugs that lower blood pressure, can halve their chances of a heart attack or stroke, a study suggests.
The long-awaited findings of the Tips trial, presented at a meeting of the American College of Cardiology in Florida, showed that the single pill formulation can be used to prevent multiple health conditions and is well tolerated by patients.
People taking the polypill enjoyed the benefits of the five individual therapies: the statin reduced cholesterol, the three antihypertensives reduced blood pressure, and the aspirin reduced the clotting ability of the blood.
The research in India involved more than 2,000 people aged 45 to 80 and was the most comprehensive study yet of the ‘magic bullet’ pill.
Scientists compared Polycap, a five-drug polypill, with combinations of its different components to assess effectiveness and safety.
They concluded that if the pill was given to a population of healthy adults with at least one risk factor, such as raised blood pressure, obesity or smoking, it halved the number of heart attacks, strokes and other cardiovascular problems.
Although the researchers did not examine death rates, the figures suggested that it could result in thousands of lives being saved each year.
Since the study looked at a relatively low-risk population, it suggested that the polypill might have a significantly bigger impact in practice.
The pill, which would be most appropriate for those over 55, could end the need for complex screening, reduce the number of doctor’s appointments and might be sold for less than $2 a day.
