Primary prevention with statins can reduce cardiovascular events in some patients, aged 50 to 75, if they have a life expectancy of at least 2.5 years, according to a meta-analysis.

Treating 100 adults with no known cardiovascular disease with statins for 2.5 years would prevent one major adverse cardiovascular event in one patient, according to a report in JAMA Internal Medicine.

The researchers, led by Dr Lindsey Yourman of the University of California, San Diego, looked at eight randomised controlled trials of statins for primary prevention in adults 55 and older, to estimate how long statin treatment would need to last in order for its benefits to outweigh its risks.

Their results included more than 65,000 participants who were followed for an average of two to six years.