Enfermedad cerebrovascular y estatinas / Cerebrovascular accidents and statins

ABSTRACT

Summary: Cerebrovascular disease is one of the leading causes of death in Chile. Its main manifestation, CVA, is most frequent in elderly subjects. Approximately 70 percent of CVA recognize an ischemic origin, the rest corresponds to intracerebral bleeding episodes. In several studies the prior use of statins has been proven to reduce the incidence of CVA as well as improving their prognosis, in spite of a lack of significant correlation with statin's effects on serum cholesterol. Statin effects have been related to their pleiotropic properties, to reductions in Protein C levels and to activation of endothelial stem cells. American Stroke Association Guidelines (2011) recommend statins for CVA in subjects with high cardiovascular risk. Triglycerides have not been clearly shown to be a risk factor for CVA and no other lipid lowering agents are recommended in this setting.