Cholesterol Drug Approved for New Use

(February 11, 2010) - A well-known cholesterol-lowering drug has been approved for another condition. (Read about "Cholesterol") The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved Crestor (rosuvastatin) for some patients who are at increased risk of heart disease (Read about "Heart Risks" "Coronary Heart Disease") but have not been diagnosed with it.

The new indication is for reducing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke (Read about "Heart Attack" "Stroke") or the need for a procedure to treat blocked or narrowed arteries (Read about "Arteriosclerosis & Atherosclerosis") in patients who have never been told they have heart disease but are nevertheless at increased risk of a cardiac event.

Specifically, this includes men 50 years of age and older and women 60 years of age and older who have an elevated amount of a substance known as high sensitivity C-reactive protein in their blood and at least one additional traditional cardiovascular risk factor such as smoking, high blood pressure, a family history of premature heart disease, or low amounts of high-density lipoprotein or HDL cholesterol, the so-called "good cholesterol." (Read about "Quit Smoking" "Hypertension: High Blood Pressure" "Family Health History")

This new indication does not approve the use of Crestor in individuals who have an elevated high sensitivity C-reactive protein but no traditional cardiovascular risk factors.

Crestor is already approved for use in combination with diet and exercise to lower LDL cholesterol and a related substance known as triglycerides in patients with a high amount of these substances in their blood. The medication is also approved to slow the progression of atherosclerosis - a thickening of the artery wall due to the buildup of cholesterol and other fatty materials.