A recent study conducted by researchers from Lund University and Imperial College London analyzed data from 36,000 heart attack patients in Sweden between 2015 and 2022, utilizing advanced statistical models to simulate a clinical trial.

The findings suggest that early combination treatment with statins and ezetimibe after a heart attack can significantly improve patient outcomes, with patients receiving this therapy within 12 weeks showing reduced risks of new cardiovascular events and death.

Patients treated early with the combination therapy were able to lower their cholesterol levels to target levels sooner, further enhancing their recovery.

Margrét Leósdóttir, a cardiology consultant from Lund University, noted that the escalation of lipid-lowering treatment often takes too long, leading to patients being lost to follow-up.

Despite the benefits of early combination therapy, current guidelines do not recommend it due to concerns about side effects and overmedication, even though ezetimibe is low-cost and has a favorable side effect profile.

Professor Kausik Ray emphasized that many patients worldwide are not receiving this combination treatment, which could prevent avoidable heart attacks and reduce healthcare costs.

The proposed dual therapy, which costs approximately £350 per year per patient, offers substantial savings compared to the long-term costs associated with treating heart attack consequences.

In the UK, implementing this treatment change could potentially prevent around 5,000 heart attacks over the next decade, given the annual admission rate of 100,000 heart attacks.

Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death globally, with heart attacks being particularly dangerous in the first year due to the heightened risk of blood clots.

Hospitals in Sweden have begun adopting new treatment algorithms that enable earlier combination therapy, resulting in better patient outcomes and faster achievement of treatment goals.

Leósdóttir expressed hope that the study's findings will influence global treatment guidelines to prevent unnecessary suffering and save lives.

Currently, one in five heart attack survivors are readmitted to the hospital for another heart attack within five years, underscoring the need for improved treatment protocols.