Statin Use Is Associated with Reduced All-Cause Mortality after Endovascular Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair

Abstract

It has been shown that preoperative statin therapy reduces all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in patients undergoing major noncardiac vascular surgery. In this report, we investigated the influence of statin use on early and late outcome following endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair (EVAR). The study population, consisting of patients collated in the EUROSTAR registry, was stratified in two groups according to statin use. Baseline characteristics between the two groups were compared by chi-square and Wilcoxon rank sum tests for discrete and continuous variables. The effects of statin use on outcomes after EVAR were analyzed by multivariate regression models. Of the 5,892 patients enrolled in the EUROSTAR registry, 731 (12.4%) patients used statins for hyperlipidemia. Statin users were younger, were more obese, and had a higher prevalence of diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension. After 5 years of follow-up, the cumulative survival rate was 77% for nonusers of statin versus 81% for statin users ( p = .005). After adjustment for age and other risk factors, statin use was still an independent predictor of improved survival ( p = .03). Our results revealed that statin prescription was more frequent in younger patients. However, when adjusted for age and medical risk factors, the use of statin in patients who underwent EVAR was still independently associated with reduced overall mortality.