Last week, the Food and Drug Administration approved a pill that lowers cholesterol levels to a greater degree than statins, the drug people typically take to manage their cholesterol levels. The new pill reduces people’s risk of heart attack and stroke by 20 percent. Merck manufactures the prescription drug, Lipfendra, reports Gina Kolata for The New York Times.
What’s your LDL level? People with a more than likely risk of heart attack need their LDL levels below 70. People at high risk of a heart attack should have an LDL under 55.
Lipfendra has been found in clinical trials to bring down LDL levels to 50 or 60. It lowers LDL cholesterol levels as much as 60 percent. Typically, people have LDL cholesterol levels of 100. Lipfendra works by inhibiting the protein PCSK9.
Lipfendra does not come cheap. Slightly more than $10 a pill. You take it daily and a month’s supply is $315. Injectable drugs also work like Lipfendra to lower cholesterol levels, but they typically cost as much as $500 to $600 a month. Not only do they cost more than Lipfendra, people don’t like taking injectable drugs.
In clinical trials, Lipfendra was found to have no side effects any different from the placebo given people.
Here’s more from Just Care:
- What’s your cholesterol level?
- Eating different snacks could lower your cholesterol
- New cholesterol guidelines focus on long-term risks
- Want to lose weight? Try eating breakfast like a king and dinner like a pauper
- Skip the keto diet, go Mediterranean
