A study from Tel Aviv University has now found that statins, a class of drugs used to lower cholesterol, cut the risks of cataracts in men by almost 40%. The study covered over 180,000 patients between the years of 1998 and 2007 and was published in the February 2010 issue of the Annals of Epidemiology.
From the heart to the head
Dr. Chodick and his colleague Dr. Varda Shalev found that men aged 45 to 54 who took the statins daily to lower their cholesterol levels also lowered their chances of developing cataracts by 38%. For women of about the same age, the risk for cataracts was also cut dramatically, by about 18%.
“People who persistently take statins have tremendously reduced chances of premature death by disease. We began to think that statins, which are proven to prevent cardiovascular disease, may do other good things in the body as well. We started investigating cataracts to show statins’ effects in a more statistical manner,” says Dr. Chodick.
A cataract is clouding of the crystalline lens in the eye of which leads to poor vision. It is the number one cause of reversible blindness in the developing world. It typically progresses slowly so that the sufferer may not even be aware of the problem. In the U.S., cataracts affect about 60% of both men and women over the age of 60. It is easily remedied with removal of the cataractous lens and replacing this with an artificial lens implant.