For the past decade, small preliminary studies have suggested that statins may be helpful as a disease-modifying treatment or add-on therapy for patients living with MS or those who have experienced a first neurological event. Early results were promising and suggest that MS patients who also take statins have less nerve damage over time. Researchers found that “statins inhibited the formation of lymphocytes and monocytes, immune-system cells which cause inflammation by attacking the body’s nerve cells” in people with MS.
In a small study in 2008, the MS patients treated with atorvastatin (Lipitor) seemed to get worse. Ten of the 17 patients who received either 40 mg or 80 mg of atorvastatin had either a relapse or a new lesion on MRI as compared to only 1 of 9 patients taking placebo who experienced a relapse or had active lesions on MRI. The authors concluded that atorvastatin (40 mg or 80 mg) taken with interferon beta-1a (Rebif) worsened the MS. This was disappointing news.
Read this post in its entirety:
MS and Cholesterol: Will Statin Medications be Useful in Treating MS
Interesting - Pete too Lipator and Betaserone together for years. Now he takes Crestor and Tysabri, wonder if the continuing cognitive degeneration could be attributed to this? I'm sure until there are more studies his doctor will not take him off the Crestor as he has a family history of blockages and very high cholesterol.
ReplyDeleteI wish that more was known at this time. I just started simvastatin (Zocor) this summer and it really does apply to me directly. I wouldn't want to do anything which might prevent (or disrupt) remyelination.
ReplyDeleteBut then again, there is at least one progressive patient who told me that he was doing much better during the time he was taking a statin. His doctor had taken him off of it and he wanted to go back on it.
I've been reading about your recent challenges with Pete lately. I really hope that the discussion of moving back to Ohio slows down. That can't be good for your own morale and well-being.
Good luck with the job search. Sounds like you have some interesting prospects. :)