Drug Discovery and Development

  • Home Drug Discovery and Development
  • Drug Discovery
  • Women in Pharma and Biotech
  • Oncology
  • Neurological Disease
  • Infectious Disease
  • Resources
    • Video features
    • Podcast
    • Voices
    • Views
    • Webinars
  • Pharma 50
    • 2025 Pharma 50
    • 2024 Pharma 50
    • 2023 Pharma 50
    • 2022 Pharma 50
    • 2021 Pharma 50
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE

Statin Drugs Reduce Infection Risk in Stroke Patients

By Washington University | June 17, 2016

A Washington State University researcher has found that statin drugs can dramatically lower the risk of infections in stroke patients.

Doug Weeks, an adjunct professor in the Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine and director of research at St. Luke’s Rehabilitation Institute, analyzed the records of more than 1,600 hospitalized patients who suffered an ischemic stroke and found statins reduced the risk of infection by 58 percent. Ischemic strokes are due to blockage of a vessel that supplies blood to the brain. His findings appear online this month in the Journal of Stroke and Cerebrovascular Diseases.

“If patients had statins before there was evidence of an infection, there was a reduced risk that they would actually develop an infection,” said Weeks.

Statins are typically used to lower cholesterol levels to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. But in the past decade, said Weeks, researchers have noticed that they also have anti-inflammatory properties in humans that can benefit the body’s response to infection.

Weeks analyzed data of hospitalized stroke patients and saw that those on statins upon admission or early in their stay had significantly lower risk for developing infections than those put on statins later in their hospitalization or not at all. Weeks controlled for other possible influences like the severity of strokes, age and the presence of other conditions like diabetes.

He and his colleagues also noticed that the timing of the drug was a major factor.

“The administration of statins relative to infection is critically important,” he said. “We’ve been able to establish that if statins are given early, before infection can occur, the risk of infection is substantially reduced. However, this relationship needs to be tested in more rigorous placebo-controlled studies to see if this benefit with statins is maintained.”

Estimates vary, but one-third to almost one-half of stroke patients develop infections, he said. The infections could be introduced through tubes or catheters. There are also indications that stroke subdues the body’s immune system, making a patient more prone to infection.

Weeks’ coauthors are Christopher Greer, pharmacy manager at St. Luke’s and adjunct faculty in WSU’s Department of Pharmacotherapy, and Megan Willson, a pharmacist at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and a WSU clinical associate professor of pharmacotherapy.

Their work is in keeping with WSU’s Grand Challenges, a suite of research initiatives aimed at large societal issues. It is particularly relevant to the challenge of Sustaining Health and its theme of changing the course of disease.

Source: Washington University


Filed Under: Drug Discovery

 

Related Articles Read More >

Sai Life Sciences exec: GLP-1 boom has ‘exploded the peptide field’ as firm opens new center
Novartis in the Pharma 50
Swissmedic approves first malaria treatment for infants
Korean team reports all-in-one cancer nanomedicine in pre-clinical studies
Nektar’s Phase 2b atopic dermatitis win triggers 1,746% analyst target surge, but legal tussle with ex-partner Lilly could complicate path forward
“ddd
EXPAND YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND STAY CONNECTED
Get the latest news and trends happening now in the drug discovery and development industry.

MEDTECH 100 INDEX

Medtech 100 logo
Market Summary > Current Price
The MedTech 100 is a financial index calculated using the BIG100 companies covered in Medical Design and Outsourcing.
Drug Discovery and Development
  • MassDevice
  • DeviceTalks
  • Medtech100 Index
  • Medical Design Sourcing
  • Medical Design & Outsourcing
  • Medical Tubing + Extrusion
  • Subscribe to our E-Newsletter
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • R&D World
  • Drug Delivery Business News
  • Pharmaceutical Processing World

Copyright © 2025 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search Drug Discovery & Development

  • Home Drug Discovery and Development
  • Drug Discovery
  • Women in Pharma and Biotech
  • Oncology
  • Neurological Disease
  • Infectious Disease
  • Resources
    • Video features
    • Podcast
    • Voices
    • Views
    • Webinars
  • Pharma 50
    • 2025 Pharma 50
    • 2024 Pharma 50
    • 2023 Pharma 50
    • 2022 Pharma 50
    • 2021 Pharma 50
  • Advertise
  • SUBSCRIBE