Medication Discontinuation in the IMPROVE-IT Trial.
Journal Article (Journal Article;Multicenter Study)
BACKGROUND: Although cholesterol-lowering medications can reduce the risk of recurrent cardiovascular events, premature discontinuation limits effectiveness. Discontinuation rates have not been systematically reported for lipid-lowering trials. METHODS AND RESULTS: We evaluated medication discontinuation in IMPROVE-IT (Improved Reduction of Outcomes: Vytorin Efficacy International Trial), which evaluated placebo+simvastatin versus ezetimibe+simvastatin in patients hospitalized with the acute coronary syndrome and followed longitudinally postdischarge. Reasons for discontinuation were evaluated from randomization through study end (median 71.9 [interquartile range 51.8-85.8] months). Kaplan-Meier (KM) discontinuation rates were evaluated at 30 days, 1 year, and through year 7, and compared by treatment arm and region, with Cox proportional hazards modeling used to evaluate predictors of discontinuation. Overall, 46.7% of subjects discontinued study medication (KM rate by study end 50.9% [95% CI, 50.1%-51.7%]). The risk of discontinuation was highest early in the trial but decreased with increasing time, with a terminal KM rate per 100 person-years of 8.4 (8.2-8.6) from years 1 to 7. Discontinuation was higher in the placebo+simvastatin versus ezetimibe+simvastatin arm (KM rate 52.0% versus 49.8%, P=0.049) and was highest in the United States (7-year KM rate 57.4%). In multivariable modeling, smoking, prior revascularization, hypertension, unstable angina, female sex, nonwhite race, and US location were associated with higher discontinuation rates. CONCLUSIONS: Although discontinuation was highest early and stabilized to 8% per year, because of prolonged follow-up, most discontinuation occurred after year 1. Adding ezetimibe to statin therapy did not increase discontinuation risk. Geographic differences and patient-level factors should be considered in trial design and analysis. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov . Unique identifier: NCT00202878.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Navar, AM; Roe, MT; White, JA; Cannon, CP; Lokhnygina, Y; Newby, LK; Giugliano, RP; Tershakovec, AM; Braunwald, E; Califf, RM; Blazing, MA
Published Date
- January 2019
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 12 / 1
Start / End Page
- e005041 -
PubMed ID
- 30630361
Pubmed Central ID
- PMC6541480
Electronic International Standard Serial Number (EISSN)
- 1941-7705
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1161/CIRCOUTCOMES.118.005041
Language
- eng
Conference Location
- United States