Hearty drug

People with high cholesterol can
reduce the risk of a first time heart
attack by 31 per cent and the risk or
death by 22 per cent by takIng a
widely prescribed drug tailed
pravastatin sodium. This was the
conclusion ofa landmark study in
the UK -the West of Scotland
Coronary Prevention Study - presented at the annual meeting of
the American Heart Association.
In the study, conducted by the
University of Glasgowand funded
by Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceuticals, nearly one-third of expected heart attacks were avoided in the pravastatin-treated patients.