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Two major studies released recently provide evidence that medications derived from fish are effective in protecting people from heart attacks, strokes and other forms of cardiovascular disease.
The large, multiyear research efforts tested different formulations and quantities of drugs made with Omega-3 fatty acids on two groups of people: one that is suffering from cardiovascular disease or diabetes and one that represents the general population. Both studies found that people who have taken a daily dose of heart disease compared to those given placebo.
The research was released last fall at the American Heart Association's 2018 Scientific Sessions in Chicago and published in the New England Journal of Medicine.
About 43 million people in the United States take down LDL, or "bad," cholesterol, and the drugs are credited with reducing the risk of heart attacks and strokes. But heart disease remains the leading killer of Americans. So researchers continue to be involved in the fight against cardiovascular disease in the diet, exercise and smoking habits.
One of the studies, named by the acronym REDUCE-IT, determined that people with cardiovascular disease who were already taking care of the disease. Vascepa (icosapent ethyl) twice a day.
The drug is a purified version of a fish oil that targets triglycerides, another type of fat in the blood. Elevated triglycerides can harden or thicken arteries, potentially leading to strokes and heart attacks. People who took the drug were compared with those who were given a placebo. The study involved more than 8,000 people.
The drug is made by Amarin Corp., which sponsored the research. In September, Amarin announced that the study had met its primary goals.
Deepak Bhatt, Executive Director of Interventional Cardiovascular Programs at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, who led the study, said the results of the study of cardiology in the same way that the introduction of statins did more than 30 years ago.
"I've been doing clinical trials for a long time, and I have not been involved in this process, but I think it's a much better way to improve the lives of people of the people," Bhatt said.
The other fish oil study, called VITAL, looked at the effect of a different formulation of Omega-3 fatty acids in a drug called Lovaza. Researchers followed nearly 26,000 people for a median of more than five years. The results suggest that people given the drug were 28 percent less likely to have heart failure than placebo and 8 percent less likely to have a variety of cardiovascular events. The effect was even more pronounced among African Americans. But the lead researcher said the results need further study before they can be relied upon.
People who ate fewer than 1.5 times as much as they eat while they eat more. The study did not find a decline in strokes.
JoAnne Manson, chief of the division of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, who said the study, said it "further supports the benefits of Omega-3 in heart health."
They are not conclusive enough, but they are not conclusive enough to include fish supplements. The study also showed that the medication is safe enough to have no reason to stop, she said in an interview.
People in the study were given 840 milligrams of the key fatty acids in fish oil each day, which is found in a typical serving of salmon.
"We would encourage starting with more fish in the diet and having at least two servings a week," Manson said.
Lovaza is manufactured by GSK but is available in generic form. The study was sponsored by the National Institutes of Health.
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