Atorvastatin Lowers Cardiovascular Event Risk in Older Adults

A double-blind trial of 9,971 older adults found that daily 40 mg doses of atorvastatin significantly reduced the risk of major cardiovascular events by 30 percent over a median of 5.9 years.

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine on August 28, 2026, reported 297 cardiovascular events in the atorvastatin group compared to 412 in the placebo group.

While effective for heart health, the medication did not improve disability-free survival rates, with serious adverse events occurring at a similar 2.7 percent rate in both study groups.