The final results of the ARBITER 6-HALTS trial<\/strong>, which provoked an explosion of controversy upon initial publication<\/a> last November, have now been published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology<\/em><\/a>. The trial compared ezetimibe to extended-release niacin in high-risk patients already taking statins. Villines et al. report the CIMT results on 315 patients enrolled in the trial \u2014 208 who completed the full 14-month follow-up prior to the trial’s early termination, and 107 who had a mean treatment period of 7 months.
\n Ezetimibe treatment did not reduce either mean CIMT or maximal CIMT compared to baseline measurements. By contrast, extended-release niacin resulted in significant reductions in mean CIMT and maximal CIMT compared to baseline. In addition, the trial investigators wrote that a strong “relationship between cumulative drug exposure and the CIMT effect” of niacin “supports an expected, direct relationship between increasing intensity of drug exposure (through a composite of dose, adherence, and time) and its effect on atherosclerosis.” In sharp contrast, “findings with ezetimibe [show] an unexpected inverse relationship between intensity of drug exposure and CIMT.”
\nClick here to view blogs and discussions about ARBITER 6-HALTS on CardioExchange.<\/a><\/p>\n