Statin Use in Children and Adolescents – Dos, Don’ts and Practical Tips

We review treatment criteria in the pediatric population, provide practical advice on how and when to prescribe statins, and share tips to improve compliance.

Although long-term outcome studies of cardiovascular-related events, such as myocardial infarction (MI) and stroke, are lacking in this population, statin therapy initiated during adolescence has been shown to be safe and effective for up to 20 years of continuous use.

HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins) are the most effective class of drugs for lowering low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in children and adolescents.