Cholesterol: The new drugs to lower it are only available in hospitals
In our country, cardiovascular diseases are still the main cause of death, accounting for 44% of all deaths. Numbers that, according to the latest guidelines from the European Society of Cardiology, could be significantly reduced if prevention strategies were implemented more intensively, especially in patients identified as being at high cardiovascular risk.
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The importance of secondary prevention
“There Lowering LDL cholesterolthe “bad” remains one of the most powerful tools for reducing cardiovascular and all-cause risk and mortality, and for achieving less progression or even regression of atherosclerotic lesions of the coronary arteries,” he explains Joseph Musumeci, Director of Cardiology at the Mauriziano Hospital in Turin. “In the presence of previous cardiac events such as a heart attack, stroke or revascularization operations, the secondary prevention plays a key role in reducing the risk of new cardiovascular events.
New cholesterol-lowering drugs available in the hospital
Today, the new monoclonal antibodies, which are directed against it, join the standard therapies PCSK9 protein, which make it possible to further reduce the risk and thus enable better clinical outcomes. And in order to control LDL cholesterol as much as possible, the Italian Medicines Agency (AIFA) has decided to do it Lower the LDL cholesterol threshold by 100 to 70 mg/dl for the use of PCSK9 inhibitors in secondary prevention. PCSK9 inhibitors are reimbursed by the National Health Service, but the Italian medicines agency AIFA has linked their prescription to the creation of surveillance registries limited to a small number of prescribing centerswith significant inconvenience for cardiologists and patients.
“Today Patients have to go to hospitals regularly renew surveillance records as they are now outdated as the drug is used by thousands of patients and is virtually free of side effects. In addition, PCSK9 inhibitors is only sold in hospital pharmacies“In order to facilitate access to these medicines, they should also be available in local pharmacies, i.e. the pharmacies closest to where patients live,” Musumeci comments.
