Statins help elderly as well as young after stroke

Elderly people who've suffered a recent stroke benefit almost as much from treatment with a "statin" drug as do younger stroke patients, researchers report in the medical journal Neurology. The cholesterol-lowering statins reduce the risk of heart disease. A study called SPARCL (for Stroke Prevention by Aggressive Reduction in Cholesterol Levels) was performed to see if statins also reduced stroke risk. The study compared the risks and benefits of taking high-dose atorvastatin (brand name Lipitor) versus an inactive placebo for patients who had recently had a stroke or a so-called TIA, or transient ischemic attack. TIAs are sometimes called mini-strokes, but experts say the condition is far from trivial. - Reuters