LAUSR

OBJECTIVE This work aims to analyze the impact of Spain's National Center for Cardiovascular Research (CNIC-Ferrer)'s cardiovascular (CV)-polypill on blood pressure (BP) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (cLDL) levels in patients in our healthcare area who previously took equipotent doses of statins and antihypertensives. MATERIAL AND METHODS All patients in our healthcare area (Santiago de Compostela, Spain) who, as of December 31, 2019, had an active prescription for the CV-polypill (CNIC-Ferrer) since January 16, 2015 were registered. The index date was the start date of the CV-polypill prescription. The drugs the patient had previously received for dyslipidemia and hypertension were analyzed, classifying them by their equivalent potency to atorvastatin and ramipril. Changes in cLDL and BP were analyzed by means of Student's t-test for paired samples. RESULTS We analyzed 547 patients with a mean age of 71.5 ± 11.5 years. The majority were men (60.6%). We observed a decrease in cLDL (-10.6 [95% CI: -7.0, -14.3], p < 0.001) in patients who started taking the CV-polypill who had previously taken equally potent doses of atorvastatin (n = 471). We documented a reduction in systolic BP (-3.7 [95% CI: -0.4, -6.9], p = 0.029) in patients who had previously taken equally potent doses of ramipril (n = 360). In 88 patients, the CV-polypill was started via equally potent doses of atorvastatin and ramipril, with a decrease in cLDL (-8.7 [95% CI: -3.8, -13.6], p = 0.001) and systolic BP (-3.6 [95% CI: -7.8, 0.5], p = 0.085). CONCLUSIONS The initiation of treatment with the CV-polypill in patients who previously received equally potent treatment with atorvastatin and ramipril was associated with a greater reduction in cLDL and systolic BP.