EP328: Discussing Statin Intolerance

Doctor Warrick Bishop - Heart Health

Welcome to my podcast. I am Doctor Warrick Bishop, and I want to help you to live as well as possible for as long as possible. I’m a practising cardiologist, best-selling author, keynote speaker, and the creator of The Healthy Heart Network. I have over 20 years as a specialist cardiologist and a private practice of over 10,000 patients.

Dr. Warrick Bishop discusses statin intolerance and the nocebo effect in his podcast. He describes a study that found 78% of patients believed to be statin intolerant were actually able to tolerate the medications. Another study found 72% of self-reported statin intolerant patients could take statins without issues when blinded to the therapy. A trial called Samsung found that 90% of reported muscle symptoms were from the nocebo effect rather than the statins themselves.

Dr. Bishop concludes that lowering statin dosage frequency or adding other drugs can help many more patients achieve health benefits from cholesterol lowering therapies.

Takeaways:

• Heart disease is a major issue in Australia, with many heart attacks potentially preventable through lifestyle changes like managing blood pressure, weight, and cholesterol.
• Statins are an important medication for lowering cholesterol but some patients report side effects or intolerance.
• Studies show that a significant percentage of patients who report statin intolerance are actually able to tolerate the medications if given in a blinded manner.
• The nocebo effect, where negative expectations cause side effects, appears to account for a large percentage (around 90%) of reported statin side effects in some studies.
• Intermittent dosing of statins, like 2-3 times per week, can still achieve cholesterol goals for many while reducing side effects.
• Adding other medications like PCSK9 inhibitors can further boost cholesterol lowering when used with statins, even at reduced doses or frequency.
• Evaluating for other potential causes of muscle pains is important before attributing them to statins.
• Social media has contributed to negative perceptions of statins that may worsen the nocebo effect.
• Large studies have found similar rates of side effects between different statins and non-statin medications when blinded.
• Coronary artery disease is a leading cause of death, so understanding risk factors is important for prevention.

Australia, like the rest of the western world, has a heart problem.

Over 9 million people around the world die from heart disease every year.

Every 10 minutes, someone in Australia suffers a heart attack. And 21 lives are lost daily because of it.

The devastating fact in all of this is…

Almost every one of those cases could have been prevented.

This podcast is for anyone who wants to improve their health literacy and gain information to help them make the best decisions about their risk of heart attack, their cholesterol, blood pressure, risk of diabetes, weight loss and general health. Join me on my personal mission journey to prevent Heart Attack on a global scale. If you like this podcast, I would be honoured by a 5-star review and appreciate if you let your friends and family know about this podcast; you may even save the life of someone you love!

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Are You at Risk of a Sudden Heart Attack? How Healthy is Your Heart? Really?

Heart disease is the #1 killer in the Western World. In Australia, someone dies every 28 minutes from heart disease. That’s 51 people a day. In the US, someone has a heart attack every 40 SECONDS! Fortunately, many heart attacks are preventable. However, regular exercise and eating healthy are no guarantee you won’t succumb to this silent killer.

• 94% of Australians have at least One Risk Factor for heart disease.
• 59% of Australians have been Touched by heart disease.
• Yet only 3% of Australians have had a Full Heart-Health Assessment in the past 12 months.

Do the free heart check today at www.virtualheartcheck.com.au

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• understand the present state of their heart’s health
• recognise their current level of risk of suffering a heart attack
• Learn the positive steps they can take to improve their situation

Visit https://healthyheartnetwork.com/ and click on the JOIN THE FAMILY BUTTON