Statins may improve odds of surviving a bleeding stroke
Cholesterol drugs seems to help people who have had stroke caused by ruptured blood vessels
By Nathan Seppa
People in the throes of a stroke caused by bleeding in the brain appear to fare better if they are taking cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins. In a review of medical records, researchers found that those getting statins while being treated for a hemorrhagic stroke were twice as likely to be alive 30 days later as were those not getting the drugs during treatment. Researchers report the results September 22 in JAMA Neurology.
There are two main types of stroke. Most are caused by blood clots in the brain, but up to 20 percent result from bleeding. While research has shown that statins help prevent and possibly treat clot-based strokes, some studies have found no protection against bleeding strokes. One even suggested that statins increased the bleeding-stroke risk, a finding that sent a ripple of worry through hospitals.