Impact of statin therapy on the artery wall in the low-risk patient: Implications from the METEOR study

Lowering levels of LDL-cholesterol is associated with profound clinical benefit. More recently, it has been demonstrated that intensively lowering LDL-cholesterol to very low levels is associated with greater benefit. Vascular imaging has defined that this approach has a dramatic impact on the progression of disease in the artery wall. The Measuring Effects on Intima-Media Thickness: an Evaluation of Rosuvastatin in Subclinical Atherosclerosis (METEOR) study observed that rosuvastatin halted progression of carotid intimal-medial thickness in participants with low Framingham risk scores and evidence of subclinical atherosclerosis. This extends the benefits of intensive statin therapy to patients who would not typically be treated. It also highlights the concept that imaging modalities and other emerging risk markers may identify patients who could benefit from the use of established preventive medical therapies.