Many professional bodies in the UK and globally have written guidelines on the appropriate cholesterol lowering agents to use in different patient groups.
EZETROL, co-administered with a statin (HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor) is indicated as adjunctive therapy to diet in patients with primary (heterozygous familial and non-familial) hypercholesterolaemia who are not appropriately controlled with a statin alone.
EZETROL monotherapy is indicated as adjunctive therapy to diet in patients with primary (heterozygous familial and non-familial) hypercholesterolaemia in whom a statin is considered inappropriate or is not tolerated.
EZETROL is indicated to reduce the risk of cardiovascular events in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) and a history of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) when added to ongoing statin therapy or initiated concomitantly with a statin.
EZETROL, co-administered with a statin, is indicated as adjunctive therapy to diet in patients with HoFH. Patients may also receive adjunctive treatments.
EZETROL is indicated as adjunctive therapy to diet in patients with homozygous familial sitosterolaemia.
EZETROL is a cholesterol absorption inhibitor which means that it stops cholesterol absorption from the small intestine. Cholesterol is prevented from leaving the small intestine by the selective inhibition of the sterol transporter Niemann-Pick C1-Like 1 (NPC1L1). EZETROL is taken orally and localises at the brush border of the small intestine and inhibits the absorption of cholesterol, leading to a decrease in cholesterol in the bloodstream.
This is a differing mode of action from statins, the main treatment for high cholesterol, which reduce cholesterol synthesis in the liver.7 Therefore, statins and EZETROL can work synergistically to lower blood cholesterol levels. Please play the video for a full explanation.
EZETROL Summary of Product Characteristics.
Task Force for the management of dyslipidaemias of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and the European Atherosclerosis Society (EAS). ESC/EAS Guidelines for the management of dyslipidaemias. Eur Heart J 2011; 32(14): 1769-1818.
Randomised trial of cholesterol lowering in 4444 patients with coronary heart disease: the Scandinavian Simvastatin Survival Study (4S). Lancet 1994; 344: 1383-89.
Cannon CP et al. Ezetimibe added to Statin Therapy after Acute Coronary Syndromes. N Engl J Med 2015; 372: 2387-2397.
Leiter LA et al. Am J Cardiol 2008; 102: 1495-1501.
Bays et al. Efficacy and safety of Ezetimibe added to atorvastatin versus atorvastatin uptitration or switching to rosuvastatin in patients with primary hypercholesterolemia. Am J Cardiol 2013; 112: 1885-1895.
Shepherd J. The role of the exogenous pathway in hypercholesterolaemia. Eur Heart J Suppl 2001; 3(suppl E): E2-E5.