Enrollment is now open at Essentia Health for a new clinical trial called PREVENTABLE.
The study will investigate whether taking atorvastatin, a drug commonly used to lower cholesterol also called Lipitor, can help adults ages 75 and older maintain their health by preventing dementia, disability and heart disease.
The study, which aims to be one of the largest ever conducted among older adults, will include more than 20,000 participants and 100 sites across the United States. It will randomize participants without heart disease or dementia to receive either atorvastatin or a placebo.
“PREVENTABLE is a remarkable study for a number of reasons. Few studies have focused exclusively on individuals aged 75 or older,” Dr. Katie Benziger, a cardiologist at Essentia Health St. Mary’s-Heart & Vascular Center, stated in a news release.
Researchers will follow participants for up to five years and test their memory, thinking and physical abilities, and monitor them for events such as heart attacks or strokes.
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The study is designed to make research participation easy and efficient. Researchers will follow participants using electronic health records, Medicare data and with phone visits.
About 1 in 3 people in the U.S. over the age of 75 without heart disease are taking statins. Statins are a common name for a group of medications that help lower cholesterol and reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke.
“This study will help to clarify the benefit of statins for this population. This is important to do before adding one more medication to the list of medicines older adults are often already taking,” Dr. Karen Alexander, a geriatric cardiologist at Duke University Medical Center and the principal investigator for PREVENTABLE, stated in the release.
To learn more about PREVENTABLE, visit preventabletrial.org/home.cfm .
For more information, including who can take part in the study, contact Ryan Thiel, research and evaluation specialist at Essentia Health, at 218-786-8856 or Ryan.Thiel@EssentiaHealth.org .
