Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a small amount can cut your chance of having a stroke by about a quarter—even if you're not at high risk to begin with—and it works just as well for low-risk people as it does for high-risk ones.

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Pro

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Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

76

Community contributions welcome

76

The effects of lowering LDL cholesterol with statin therapy in people at low risk of vascular disease: meta-analysis of individual data from 27 randomised trials

Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis

Human

This big study found that taking statins to lower bad cholesterol by 1 mmol/L reduces stroke risk by about 24% even in people with very low risk of heart problems — and the benefit was just as strong as in high-risk people.

Contradicting (0)

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No contradicting evidence found

Gold Standard Evidence Needed

According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.

Source Study

The effects of lowering LDL cholesterol with statin therapy in people at low risk of vascular disease: meta-analysis of individual data from 27 randomised trials

Score: 76

DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60367-5

Similar Assertions

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by just a little bit can cut your chance of having a stroke by about a quarter—even if you're not at high risk to begin with—and this help comes mostly from preventing strokes caused by blood clots, not brain bleeds.

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97%

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a certain amount can cut your chance of having a stroke caused by a blood clot by about 21%, and this benefit is about the same whether you're already at high or low risk for heart problems.

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95%

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a specific amount can cut your chance of having a heart attack or stroke by about 1 in 5—even if you’ve never had heart problems before and are considered low risk.

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90%

Taking statins to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a small amount can cut your chance of having a heart attack by nearly half—even if you're not at high risk for heart disease yet.

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90%

If you're at low risk for heart problems and take a statin to lower your 'bad' cholesterol by a small amount, you're about 11% less likely to have a heart attack or stroke over the next five years — out of 1000 people like you, roughly 11 fewer will have a major heart or blood vessel problem.

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89%