Prevention of Statin Overtreatment and Increased Patient Compliance in High Cardiovascular Risk Individuals

Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States, and the prevalence of this disease has been increasing since 2015.1 Poor patient adherence to treatment and unnecessarily complex treatment guidelines for physicians are major barriers to reducing cardiovascular disease. We propose that only individuals with proven cardiovascular disease should be treated with statins. We argue against treating individuals solely on the basis of perceived “high risk” in the absence of proven coronary disease.