News
How do PCSK9-inhibitors reduce lipoprotein(a)?
Beyond lowering LDL cholesterol, PCSK9 inhibition also reduces lipoprotein(a). Prof Derick Raal, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa discusses the underlying mechanism. Lipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] is an LDL-like particle consisting of apolipoprotein(a) [apo(a)] that is disulphide-linked to the apoB moiety of LDL (1). Lp(a)…
read more »
6th Joint Task Force Guidelines on CVD Prevention now available
Updated guidelines from the European Society of Cardiology and nine other societies have been published today. The authors argue that modest risk factor reduction could halve cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality rates. Currently, CVD is the cause of almost half of all deaths each year in…
read more »
New screening tool for FH for primary care
A new electronic tool for screening for familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH, inherited high cholesterol) in primary care shows promise. According to one of the authors, Professor Gerald Watts, University of Western Australia and Royal Perth Hospital, Western Australia: ‘TARB-Ex is a quick and cost-effective extraction tool…
read more »
UK Paediatric FH register: LDL-C and family history drives diagnosis
Preliminary data from this register, including the largest group of UK children with a clinical diagnosis of familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH, inherited high cholesterol), show that a strong family history of coronary heart disease (CHD) and elevated LDL cholesterol levels primarily drive treatment decisions. Professor Gerald…
read more »
FH affects 1 in 5 young STEMI patients
A study from Greece has highlighted the high prevalence of definite/probable familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH, inherited high cholesterol) in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) aged 35 years or less. This prospective study included 320 consecutive patients who had survived their first STEMI at ≤35…
read more »
NICE approves alirocumab and evolocumab in draft guidance
The UK National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has now approved both alirocumab (Praluent, Sanofi) and evolocumab (Repatha, Amgen) for adults with primary hypercholesterolaemia or mixed dyslipidaemia to help reduce their risk of cardiovascular disease, in draft guidance. The specific recommendations are for…
read more »
Alirocumab for Autosomal Recessive Hypercholesterolemia
Results from this in vitro study suggest that PCSK9 inhibition with alirocumab on top of statin treatment may have the potential to lower LDL cholesterol in some patients with autosomal recessive hypercholesterolemia (ARH), a phenocopy of homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH, inherited high cholesterol). ARH is…
read more »
ACC 2016: Late Breaker underscores the value of genetic testing in ascertaining coronary risk in FH
A key paper for the familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH, inherited high cholesterol) community was presented at the clinical Latebreaker session. According to PCSK9 Forum Board member, Professor Gerald Watts, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia, the paper by Khera and co-workers not only confirms the higher…
read more »
American College of Cardiology updates guidance for non-statin therapies for LDL-C lowering
In a prelude to this year’s Annual Congress, the American College of Cardiology has released a new consensus document to address gaps from the 2013 ACC/American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines (1) regarding the use of non-statin therapies for lowering LDL cholesterol. This important document provides…
read more »
Latebreaker Clinical Trial GAUSS-3: Evolocumab in patients with statin intolerance
While confirming the superior LDL cholesterol lowering efficacy of evolocumab over ezetimibe, GAUSS-3 also highlights the difficulties of diagnosing statin intolerance, according to PCSK9 Forum Co-Editor Professor Henry Ginsberg. In contrast to the other two trials with evolocumab in statin intolerant patients, GAUSS-3 included an…
read more »
Why PCSK9 inhibitors are needed in FH: SAFEHEART highlights poor LDL cholesterol control
Five-year follow-up data from the Spanish SAFEHEART registry of patients with familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH, inherited high cholesterol) show that attainment of LDL cholesterol is still a major issue. Only 11% attained an LDL-C level of <2.5 mmol/L (100 mg/dl). This was despite increasing maximally tolerated…
read more »
Positive results with ODYSSEY ESCAPE in severe FH
Topline results from ODYSSEY ESCAPE showed that in patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH, inherited high cholesterol) who required regular lipoprotein apheresis, on top of maximally tolerated lipid lowering therapy, addition of alirocumab significantly reduced the requirement for apheresis. The frequency of apheresis therapy with…
read more »
Finding FH: the USA needs to do better
PCSK9 Forum interviewed Professor Gerald Watts, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia and Dr Peter Lansberg, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands about the implications of the USA study estimating FH prevalence, reported in News (1): Familial hypercholesterolaemia affects 1 in 250 people in USA…
read more »
Familial hypercholesterolaemia affects 1 in 250 people in USA
Familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH, inherited high cholesterol) is as common in the USA as in Europe, according to findings based on the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES). In the study, the authors evaluated data from 36,949 adults (aged 20 years or more) in…
read more »
MONICA study: greater LDL cholesterol lowering in high-risk patients in Sweden
Trends in cholesterol levels in Sweden over the last 20 years show greater impact in individuals at high risk of cardiovascular disease, according to this report from the MONICA study. The study evaluated data from 8,941 individuals (4,546 women and 4,349 men aged 25-74 years)…
read more »
Statin response and potential benefit from PCSK9 inhibition
A report from the JUPITER (Justification for the Use of statins in Prevention: an Intervention Trial Evaluating Rosuvastatin) Study Group shows wide variability in the percent LDL cholesterol reduction to high-intensity statin therapy. Moreover, the cardiovascular risk reduction was directly related to percent LDL cholesterol…
read more »
PCSK9 INHIBITION: New Therapies in Cardiovascular Risk Reduction
3rd Edition coming! Including FOURIER and other key reports from the 66th Annual Scientific Session of the American College of Cardiology – ACC.2017 Elevated LDL cholesterol is one of most important drivers of atherosclerotic vascular disease, a primary cause of premature cardiovascular mortality and morbidity….
read more »
GAUSS-3 in statin intolerance: top-line results positive with evolocumab
Amgen announced last week that the Phase III study, GAUSS-3 (Goal Achievement After Utilizing an Anti-PCSK9 Antibody in Statin Intolerant Subjects-3), evaluating evolocumab in patients with high cholesterol who cannot tolerate statins met its co-primary endpoints of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol reduction. Specifically, these related…
read more »
ALN-PCSsc, first-in-class PCSK9 RNA interference therapeutic advances to Phase II
ALN-PCSsc, first-in-class PCSK9 RNA interference therapeutic advances to Phase II ALN-PCSsc a novel PCSK9 therapeutic that blocks PCSK9 synthesis in the liver, has now entered Phase II development, with the launch of the ORION-1 study. This study aims to enrol 480 patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular…
read more »
More support for the benefit of PCSK9 inhibitors in chronic kidney disease
This latest report shows that reduced glomerular filtration rate (GFR), a marker of impaired renal function, has no effect on plasma PCSK9 levels, implying that PCSK9 inhibition should have similar benefit in patients with impaired renal function. Patients with impaired renal function represent an important…
read more »
