COMPARISON OF QUALITY OF LIFE IN PATIENTS WITH PCSK9 INHIBITORS VS. STATIN INTOLERANCE

Abstract

Therapeutic Area: PCSK9 inhibitors Background: PCSK9 inhibitors (PCSK9i) reduce cardiovascular (CV) events and lower LDL levels by 60% when added to statin therapy in high-risk patients, but lack data regarding quality of life (QoL). QoL impacts patient compliance and clinical decision making. We sought to examine QoL in patients using PCSK9i vs. statin-intolerance (SI). Methods: We used EuroQol-5 Dimension (EQ-5D) questionnaire to collect data retrospectively at a single major academic center. Patients (n=100) were selected if they were using a PCSK9i (n=50) or had SI (n=50) for at least six months. QoL data was compared among both groups. Results: Patients using PCSK9i had improved QoL in all five dimensions of EQ-5D (Table I). The average health score for PCSK9i group (gp) was about 71 vs. 41 in SI gp. A sub-group analysis in patients with diabetes, concomitant use of lipid-lowering agents, CAD, PCI, and CABG, showed similar results. Baseline characteristics of patients in the PCSK9i gp vs. statin gp are: mean age 61.9 vs. 62.56 years, males 64% vs. 42%, family history of CV disease 54% vs. 38%, hypertension 74% vs. 64%, dyslipidemia 100% vs. 98%, diabetes 28% vs. 28%, smoking 14% vs. 16%, MI 26% vs. 32%, familial hypercholesterolemia 14 % vs. 8%, CAD 70% vs. 68%, PCI 56% vs. 46%, and CABG 14% vs. 12%. Conclusions: PCSK9 inhibitors improve QoL when compared to statin intolerant patients in a cohort with similar baseline characteristics.