Editorials

Lower patients' cholesterol now

The first principle of the lipid hypothesis is that raised plasma cholesterol concentrations are associated with a high incidence of atherosclerosis and an increased risk of coronary heart disease. That assertion no longer stirs argument in medical circles. But the second principle--that both this risk and total mortality can be reduced by lowering plasma cholesterol concentrations--remains controversial. Polarisation of views has led over the past 20 years to the emergence of enthusiasts for whom cholesterol lowering and the prevention of coronary heart disease are almost synonymous and sceptics who attribute to lipid reduction more harm than good. This lack of consensus has been widely publicised by the media, and many people believe that the case for treating raised cholesterol concentrations is flawed and can be disregarded. The publication in 1994 of the results of several new trials has shown that this attitude . . . [Full text of this article]

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