Statins are Unlikely to Prevent Blood Clots, PLoS Medicine Reveals

Despite previous studies suggesting the contrary, statins (cholesterol-lowering drugs) may not prevent blood clots (venous thrombo-embolism) in adults, according to a large analysis by international researchers published in this week's PLOS Medicine. In 2009, an additional analysis of data from a randomized controlled trial called the JUPITER trial reported that the statin rosuvastatin halved the risk of venous thromboembolic events among apparently healthy adults. However, this finding was based on a small number of patients who had thromboembolic events (34 vs 60).