Statins: panacea for sepsis?

TY - JOUR

T1 - Statins

T2 - panacea for sepsis?

AU - Terblanche, M

AU - Almog, Y

AU - Rosenson, RS

AU - Smith, TS

AU - Hackam, DG

PY - 2006/4

Y1 - 2006/4

N2 - Sepsis occurs when the immune system responds to a localised infection at a systemic level, thereby causing tissue damage and organ dysfunction. Statins have proven health benefits in many diseases involving vascular inflammation and injury. Recent animal data suggest that the administration of a statin before a sepsis-inducing insult reduces morbidity and improves survival. The immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects of statins, collectively referred to as pleiotropic effects, lend biological plausibility to such findings. Limited human data hint at reduced mortality rates in bacteraemic patients, and a reduced risk of sepsis in patients with bacterial infections concurrently taking statins. These lines of evidence point to a potential new treatment and prevention modality for sepsis. The stage is set for randomised controlled clinical trials that will determine whether statins represent a safe and beneficial treatment in critically ill, septic patients and whether statins are effective at preventing sepsis in high-risk clinical settings.

AB - Sepsis occurs when the immune system responds to a localised infection at a systemic level, thereby causing tissue damage and organ dysfunction. Statins have proven health benefits in many diseases involving vascular inflammation and injury. Recent animal data suggest that the administration of a statin before a sepsis-inducing insult reduces morbidity and improves survival. The immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects of statins, collectively referred to as pleiotropic effects, lend biological plausibility to such findings. Limited human data hint at reduced mortality rates in bacteraemic patients, and a reduced risk of sepsis in patients with bacterial infections concurrently taking statins. These lines of evidence point to a potential new treatment and prevention modality for sepsis. The stage is set for randomised controlled clinical trials that will determine whether statins represent a safe and beneficial treatment in critically ill, septic patients and whether statins are effective at preventing sepsis in high-risk clinical settings.

KW - C-REACTIVE PROTEIN

KW - COA-REDUCTASE INHIBITOR

KW - CORONARY-HEART-DISEASE

KW - NITRIC-OXIDE SYNTHASE

KW - HUMAN ENDOTHELIAL-CELLS

KW - VASCULAR SMOOTH-MUSCLE

KW - COENZYME-A REDUCTASE

KW - PLACEBO-CONTROLLED TRIAL

KW - LOW-DENSITY LIPOPROTEINS

KW - MULTIPLE ORGAN FAILURE

U2 - 10.1016/S1473-3099(06)70439-X

DO - 10.1016/S1473-3099(06)70439-X

M3 - Editorial

SN - 1473-3099

VL - 6

SP - 242

EP - 248

JO - Lancet Infectious Diseases

JF - Lancet Infectious Diseases

IS - 4

ER -