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Statins improve cirrhosis treatment outcomes

Category: Liver Diseases

Individuals who have received unhealthy liver panel tests may benefit from taking statin medications. A new study has shown that the cholesterol-lowering medications may be more beneficial than previously thought.

Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston presented evidence at a meeting held as part of Digestive Disease Week indicating that cirrhosis patients who took statin medications were less likely than non-users to experience decompensation, a condition in which the liver stops regenerating healthy tissue, according to MedPage Today.

"Contrary to the prior belief that statins aren't safe in patients with cirrhosis, we found they actually may be beneficial in this population," said lead researcher Sonal Kumar, according to the news source.

Kumar added that many physicians feel that statins are not safe for patients with liver disease because the drugs are metabolized in the liver, which may put extra strain on an already diseased organ.

Cirrhosis is a survivable condition as long as it does not progress to the decompensation phase, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Statins could play an important role in preventing patients from reaching this terminal stage.