Statin escape phenomenon: Fact or fiction?

Table 1 Baseline characteristics of study participants

Variable	Escape group	Non-escape group
n	56	125
Gender (male), %	43	52
Current smoking, %	9	14
Age, yr	56 (51-63)	57 (49-65)
Waist, cm	97 (90-101)	98 (90-105)
SBP, mmHg	134 (127-146)	140 (129-150)
DBP, mmHg	83 (79-95)	87 (80-92)
Follow-up, yr	4 (3-6)	4 (4-7)
Metabolic syndrome, %	39	40
Hypertension, %	59	57
Diabetes, %	11	9
Stroke, %	5	4
Coronary heart disease, %	7	1a
Abdominal aortic aneurysm, %	2	0
Carotid stenosis ≥ 50%, %	0	2
Peripheral arterial disease, %	0	1
Statin therapy and median dose, % (median dose)
Atorvastatin	38 (20 mg)	34 (20 mg)
Rosuvastatin	29 (10 mg)	24 (10 mg)
Simvastatin	21 (40 mg)	26 (40 mg)
Fluvastatin	7 (80 mg)	6 (80 mg)
Pravastatin	0	1 (40 mg)
β-blocker, %	9	7
Thiazides, %	11	19
Pioglitazone, %	4	1
Antipsychotics, %	0	1
Levothyroxine, %	4	5
Clopidogrel, %	2	2
Proton-pump inhibitors, %	4	4

Median follow-up duration = 4 years (IQR: 3-6 years). Values are expressed as median (IQR), unless percentages as shown.

^aP < 0.05 for the comparison with the escape group. DBP: Diastolic blood pressure; IQR: Interquartile range; SBP: Systolic blood pressure.

Table 2 Lipid and metabolic profile of study participants

	Baseline visit	Visit at 6 mo	Most recent visit
TCHOL, mg/dL
Escape group	258 (233-283)	162 (147-174)	182 (170-201)
Non-escape group	259 (235-295)	184 (162-206)a	172 (154-193)a
TG, mg/dL
Escape group	117 (89-175)	97 (69-117)	104 (87-129)
Non-escape group	132 (99-181)	104 (83-140)a	108 (79-130)
HDL-C, mg/dL
Escape group	53 (47-68)	55 (43-64)	54 (48-68)
Non-escape group	53 (46-65)	52 (44-60)	56 (46-62)
LDL-C, mg/dL
Escape group	174 (152-189)	88 (78-97)	103 (96-118)
Non-escape group	177 (152-205)	109 (91-129)a	94 (79-114)a
Non-HDL, mg/dL1
Escape group	204 (181-223)	107 (97-121)	127 (116-143)
Non-escape group	209 (182-241)	132 (115-153)a	118 (102-137)a
BMI, kg/m2
Escape group	27.3 (23.5-29.9)	27.2 (23.5-30.1)	27.6 (24-30.2)
Non-escape group	27.9 (25.5-30.6)	28.3 (25.1-30.9)	28.4 (25.5-31.5)
Fasting glucose, mg/dL
Escape group	95 (88-105)	95 (87-129)	95 (88-106)
Non-escape group	93 (87-103)	94 (88-104)	96 (89-106)
HbA1c, %2
Escape group	8.5 (6.7-8.6)	6.6 (5.6-5.9)	6.7 (6.6-7.1)
Non-escape group	8.4 (7.7-10.9)	6.7 (6.3-7.9)	6.9 (6.3-7.6)
MDRD-eGFR, mL/min per 1.73 m2
Escape group	77 (69.6-86.7)	76.6 (67.9-84.8)	76.5 (65.4-81)
Non-escape group	81 (70.7-91.4)	79.7 (69-89.7)	76.9 (65.5-85.7)

Values are expressed as median (IQR). To convert from mg/dL to mmol/L multiply by 0.0555 for glucose, 0.02586 for TC, HDL-C, LDL-C, and 0.01129 for TG.

¹Non-HDL-C levels refer to non-diabetic individuals (n = 164);

²HbA1c values refer to diabetic individuals (n = 17).

^aP < 0.05 for the comparison with the escape group. BMI: Body mass index; MDRD-eGFR: Estimated glomerular filtration rate according to The Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) Study equation; HbA1c: Glycated hemoglobin; HDL-C: High-density lipoprotein cholesterol; IQR: Interquartile range; LDL-C: Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol; non-HDL-C: Non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol; TCHOL: Total cholesterol; TG: Triglycerides.