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A recent study found that people taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs such as Lipitor and Zocor may have unexpected protection from the flu. People who were already taking statins when they caught the flu and had to be hospitalized had a much higher survival rate than those who were not taking statins.
Those involved in the study were quick to remind everyone the findings did not prove that statins could cure people of the flu, or that starting a patient on statins after they were hospitalized with the flu would help them regain their health or prevent them from dying. They did note that there is currently a study underway looking into whether someone who started statins after becoming ill would gain from the drugs benefits.
The large study was released yesterday at an Infectious Diseases Society of American conference in Philadelphia causing much intrigue and excitement as discussion revealed the benefits could be seen as substantial.
What doctors are excited about is that previous studies showed statins might improve the survival rate of those who are ill from infectious diseases. The research suggests statins lower inflammation and activate the immune system to provide greater protection from infectious disease.
That is good news as we enter into flu season. Those who are already on statins have a fifty percent greater chance of surviving a flu strong enough to cause hospitalization than those who are not on any statin.
No one should attempt to start taking statins just to try to survive a bout of flu as statins carry their own side affects that can be serious if taken without a doctor’s permission or oversight.
If you have any questions about whether or not you should be taking a statin, please see your primary care physician. Do not start taking someone else’s medication just to have a statin in your system going into these high-influenza months. Blood tests need to be done in a reliable lab before your doctor will proscribe such potent medication.
