Use and Monitoring of "Statin" Lipid-Lowering Drugs Compared With Guidelines

Abstract
MANY epidemiologic studies1,2 over the past several decades have established the relation between an elevated serum cholesterol level and the development of coronary heart disease (CHD). In 1993, the expert panel of the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) proposed guidelines to stratify patients according to risk of CHD, based on cholesterol values and other risk factors. The guidelines recommend drug therapy for individuals at greatest risk.3