The FDA has granted approval for LODOCO, the first anti-inflammatory drug for cardiovascular disease. Studies have revealed that this medication, containing colchicine at a 0.5mg dosage, reduces the risk of cardiac events by an extra 31% compared to standard-of-care treatment. As a result, adults with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) or multiple risk factors for cardiovascular disease can now utilize colchicine for both the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease.
The FDA approved the drug based on data from a multi-national, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial that involved 5,522 people with chronic coronary disease. These individuals were receiving guideline-directed medical care, including high-intensity statins.
In the study’s findings, LODOCO was shown to reduce risk of:
Myocardial infarction (MI)
Stroke
Coronary revascularization
Cardiovascular death
You can use LODOCO alone or in combination with cholesterol-lowering medications.
How colchicine works?
“We have known for a number of years about the role of inflammationTrusted Source in the development of plaque buildup in the arteries,” says Dr. Brett Nowlan, a cardiologist with Hartford HealthCare Heart & Vascular Institute.
“Up until this new approval of colchicine, we did not have any medications in the cardiac field to specifically address this risk.”
Nowlan also explains the anti-inflammatory mechanisms at work in colchicine are different from other medications such as steroids, or NSAIDs like aspirin.
“It is a pill intended for once-daily intake, serving as a long-term preventive medication. You would add it to any other risk-reducing medications, such as aspirin or statins, and it would not replace their use,” he notes.
“Although we have long suspected inflammation as playing a major role in the development of coronary disease, it was only in the last 10 years that major trialsTrusted Source have come out which showed how useful an anti-inflammatory such as colchicine could be in reducing the cardiovascular risk in patients with heart disease,” says Dr. Cheng-Han Chen, PhD, interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Structural Heart Program at MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, California.
“The drug works through multiple pathways to decrease the activity of our different types of inflammatory cells. In doing so, Chen states that it has shown to reduce serious risks such as heart attack and stroke.