Study: Polypill significantly prevents heart attacks

• Taking a polypill with aspirin could significantly reduce one’s risk for heart disease, according to new research.
• Polypills are medications that combine different generic drugs prescribed to maintain blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
• Results showed that participants who uninterruptedly took polypills with aspirin reduced their risk for heart issues, such as strokes and heart attacks, by 40 percent.

New research has found a “transformational approach to preventing heart disease”: taking an inexpensive polypill and aspirin.

Polypills refer to medications that combine different generic drugs prescribed to maintain blood pressure: atenolol, ramipril, the “water pill” hydrochlorothiazide, and the cholesterol-lowering simvastatin. Polypills are usually taken alone or with aspirin.

The study found that taking polypill with aspirin reduced the risk of heart attacks and strokes by up to 40 percent.

The study followed over 5,700 participants from across the globe for about five years. All participants had underlying health conditions, such as high blood pressure or diabetes, which contribute to a moderate risk for heart issues.

Of the participants, the male volunteers were aged 50 or older while women were 55 or older.

The participants were divided into four groups: those who took a polypill, a low-dose aspirin, a polypill and an aspirin, or a placebo. The study used a polypill that was manufactured in India.

Results showed that among the participants who took polypills with aspirin, heart issues and deaths were reduced by 31 percent.

The drug combination also had minimal side effects, such as low blood pressure or dizziness. Participants who continued the medication uninterruptedly reduced their risk for heart issues by 40 percent.

Among the group that took polypills with aspirin, only around 4 percent had a heart issue, such as a heart attack or stroke, or died. Among the placebo group, meanwhile, almost 6 percent had a heart issue or died.

An earlier study in 2003 showed that polypills could prevent 88% of heart attacks and 80% of strokes.

Polypills are usually inexpensive and are most commonly used in Europe. These are not used as much in the US, however, despite the fact that heart disease is the leading cause of death (about 25 percent of all registered deaths) in the country.

Salim Yusuf, co-principal study investigator and a professor of medicine at McMaster University in Canada, stated, “We could save millions of people from experiencing serious heart disease or stroke each year with effective use of the polypill and aspirin.”

The findings were published in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented on Friday at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions.

Source: CNN