Addition of icosapent ethyl cuts CV risk in patients with prior PCI (Omega-3 (EPA ester) fat reduced death and major cardio events by 34% in people who had an angioplasty)

Medical Xpress / Journal of the American Heart Association ^ | Mar. 24, 2022 | Benjamin E. Peterson, M.D., M.P.H. et al

[ConservativeMind]

The risk for cardiovascular events is reduced in statin-treated patients with elevated triglycerides and a history of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) who receive icosapent ethyl, according to a study published online March 2 in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Benjamin E. Peterson, M.D., M.P.H., from Harvard Medical School, and colleagues conducted a post-hoc analysis focused on a subset of patients enrolled in the multicenter Reduction of Cardiovascular Events With Icosapent Ethyl-Intervention Trial (REDUCE-IT). All patients included in the post hoc analysis had a prior PCI, had been treated with a stable dose of statins for at least four weeks, and had low-density lipoprotein cholesterol <100 mg/dL and fasting triglycerides 135 mg/dL to 499 mg/dL. A total of 8,179 patients randomly assigned to either icosapent ethyl or placebo in REDUCE-IT were followed for a median of 4.9 years; 41.7 percent (3,408 patients) had a prior PCI, with a median follow-up of 4.8 years and were randomly assigned a median of 2.9 years after PCI.

The researchers observed significant reductions in the primary composite end point of cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, nonfatal stroke, coronary revascularization, or unstable angina requiring hospitalization, as well as in the key secondary composite end point of cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, or nonfatal stroke among patients treated with icosapent ethyl versus placebo (hazard ratios, 0.66 and 0.66, respectively). Large reductions were also seen in total coronary revascularizations and revascularization subtypes. A significant reduction in total events was also seen (rate ratio, 0.61).

"Icosapent ethyl has the potential to benefit a large proportion of these patients, including those with a history of prior PCI," a coauthor said in a statement.

[ConservativeMind]

Note that triglycerides are converted excess blood sugar. This can basically only occur when you eat more carbs, or more protein, than your body can use, in a meal.

Protein much more slowly becomes blood sugar, and that conversion step is in your liver, where 25% of its calories are used up.

This means having fewer carbs, or having your carbs as only complex carbs, is preferable. Even protein is preferable to complex carbs, for blood sugar. Fat doesn’t impact triglycerides much, but can affect other blood components.

[ConservativeMind]

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[DAC21]

It’s called RX Vascepa.

[DAC21]

“It’s called RX Vascepa”

With extended use it has shown to remove preexisting arterial plaque.

[ckilmer]

Never heard of RX Vascepa. Can you give a little more color that.

For example, how does RX Vascepa work? Does it remove hard plaque or soft plaque? Is it better than D3/K2 which takes calcium to the bones. Or niacin that increases HDL—which then removes soft plaque.

Are there any side effects. Can you show more studies?

[PrairieLady2]

I can’t take vesecpa. It makes me vomit.
If I’m not mistaken, it’s a highly concentrated fish oil. There are a number of health benefits associated with it. I have several bottles of the stuff and I wish I could take it, but I just cannot.

[ckilmer]

I take 4 grams of fish oil daily. so likely I don’t need vesecpa.

[catnipman]

icosapent ethyl is an extremely expensive prescription fish oil, namely Vascepa and others ...

however, ALL of these expensive prescription fish oils are of the artificial ester form, whereas fish oil in the wild is the triglyceride form ...

all fish oil has to first be converted to the ester form for molecular distillation to remove impurities such as PCBs and mercury, but high-quality fish oils go the extra step of converting back to the natural triglyceride form because the triglyceride is more beneficial to the body than the ester form ...

one of the best of these high-quality fish oils is:

Carlson - Maximum Omega 2000, 2000 mg Omega-3 Fatty Acids Including EPA and DHA, Wild-Caught, Norwegian Fish Oil Supplement, Sustainably Sourced Fish Oil Capsules, Lemon, 90+30 Softgels

[amazon.com/gp/product/B06XT711LK]

i can personally attest that taking three capsules of those every day for several weeks had an amazing effect on my serum triglyceride levels, bringing them down from moderately high to mid-normal levels, all the while still eating a moderate amount of carbs ...

fish oil is also a well-documented anti-inflammatory, which is another beneficial effect since cardiovascular disease is an inflammatory disease of the arterial endothelium as much as anything else ...

[DAC21]

Just a summary. The full non understandable to the layman study must be out there somewhere.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/heart-health/fish-oil-drug-helps-shrink-plaque-in-heart-arteries

[DAC21]

“Carlson - Maximum Omega 2000, 2000 mg Omega-3 Fatty Acids Including EPA and DHA”

Nope..pretty much established that DHA counteracts the positive effects of EPA when it comes to heart benefits. Vescepa has no / trace amounts of DHA.

[catnipman]

nope, it’s been established that a balance of DHA and EPA works best ...