Abstract
BACKGROUND: There are few recent data to delineate the beyond lipids-decreased effect of statins and the effect of different doses of statins on endothelial-derived microparticles (EMPs) and circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) in patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy (ICM). HYPOTHESIS: Statins might have the beyond lipids-decreased effect and there were different effects between different doses of statins on EMPs and circulating EPCs in patients with ICM. METHODS: One hundred patients with ICM and 100 healthy examined people, who served as the normal control group, were recruited to this study. Patients were randomly divided into 2 groups: 10-mg atorvastatin group (n = 50) and 40-mg atorvastatin group (n = 50). All subjects were followed for 1 year. The levels of serum lipids, oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), circulating EPCs, and EMPs were examined in all subjects. The incidences of adverse reactions in the 2 study groups were determined. RESULTS: At the beginning of this study, there were no significant differences in baseline characteristics between the 2 study groups. At the end of this study, the levels of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein, serum hsCRP, oxLDL, and circulating EMPs were significantly decreased; circulating EPCs were significantly increased in the 40-mg atorvastatin group compared to the 10-mg atorvastatin group, P < 0.05. The multivariate linear regression analysis indicated that receiving only 40 mg of atorvastatin had a significant effect on the levels of circulating EPCs (β = 0.252,P = 0.014). There were no significant differences in the adverse reactions between the 2 groups. CONCLUSIONS: Use of 40 mg of atorvastatin might decrease the levels of circulating EMPs and increase the number of circulating EPCs in patients with ICM in comparison with 10 mg of atorvastatin, and the effect might be independent of the decrease of lipids, oxLDL, and hsCRP.