Thursday October 31 9:01 AM EDT
Study In `New England Journal Of Medicine' Emphasizes
Importance Of Identifying Patients Who Can Most Benefit
From Cholesterol Lowering Drugs
Imatron's Ultrafast CT(R) Scanner Cited by Leading Cardiologist As
`Precisely the Answer to this Dilemma'
SO. SAN FRANCISCO, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Imatron Inc reported today that the
Cholesterol and Recurrent Events (CARE) Study published in the October 3, 1996 issue of the
New England Journal of Medicine clearly demonstrates the importance of identifying those
individuals most likely to benefit from cholesterol lowering drug therapy. The study found that the
benefits of cholesterol lowering drug therapy extend to heart disease patients with "average"
cholesterol levels.
According to Alan Wasserman, M.D. Chairman, Division of Cardiology, George Washington
University Medical Center, Washington, D.C., "The significance of this study is that, for the first
time, the effectiveness of treating patients who have heart disease in spite of the fact that they have
`normal' or `average' cholesterol levels has now clearly been shown."
Dr. Wasserman continued, "The challenge now is to identify those patients who can most benefit
from this treatment protocol prior to having either their first heart attack or an acute episode of
coronary artery disease. Recent research shows that the Coronary Artery Scan (CAS) by Ultrafast
CT(R) is precisely the answer to the dilemma facing the medical community today -- who to treat
aggressively with cholesterol lowering medication independent of an individual's specific cholesterol
level. In an asymptomatic individual, a "positive" CAS by Ultrafast CT(R) indicates the presence of
pre-clinical or non-ischemic coronary artery disease -- an ideal "gatekeeper" for aggressive
lipid-lowering therapy. The cost effectiveness of cholesterol lowering medication as part of a primary
prevention regimen in populations without symptoms or risk factors of heart disease is clearly
questionable. However, the simple, low cost, non-invasive CAS by Ultrafast CT(R) will identify the
target population for cost effective drug intervention -- those with risk factors who have
atherosclerosis."
The CARE Study demonstrates that by using drug therapy to lower what researchers consider to be
"average" cholesterol levels, there was a greater than 20% reduction of all cardiac events during a
five year follow-up period. The recent West of Scotland (WOSCOPS) Study showed similar
benefits in patients with high levels of blood cholesterol without proven heart disease. The
Scandinavian Simvastatin Survival Study (4S) demonstrated a reduction in cardiac events in patients
with proven heart disease and high cholesterol levels. All three of these major studies, conducted on
a total of 13,000 subjects, point toward the clinical and financial benefits of using proven
lipid-lowering medication to reduce cholesterol, regardless of the initial level of cholesterol, in
patients with heart disease.
S. Lewis Meyer, President and CEO of Imatron, stated, "This study, together with the West of
Scotland study and the 4S study, builds a compelling case for using CAS to identify individuals at
risk for coronary artery disease and implementing an aggressive program of risk factor modification
including cholesterol-lowering drug therapy. The widespread acceptance of this approach to treating
early stage coronary artery disease should not only increase sales of Imatron's Ultrafast CT(R)
scanners, but also drive business in our nationwide network of HeartScan Coronary Artery Disease
Risk Assessment Centers."
The CAS by Ultrafast CT(R) is a non-invasive test able to detect and quantify calcium in the
coronary arteries. The American Heart Association (AHA) in the September 1, 1996 issue of its
journal Circulation, officially acknowledged the role of Ultrafast CT(R) Electron Beam Tomography
in the diagnosis and management of heart disease. This far-reaching Medical Scientific Statement
comes on the heels of a May 31, 1996 AHA press release announcing a landmark study that
concluded the CAS by Ultrafast CT(R) is "more powerful than the best available non-invasive test in
predicting heart attack and other coronary disease episodes, even in apparently healthy people."
Imatron Inc. is primarily engaged in designing, manufacturing and marketing high performance
computed tomography (CT) scanners based on the Company's proprietary scanning electron beam
technology. Ultrafast CT(R) is a registered trademark of Imatron. Imatron's Ultrafast CT(R) scanner
is now in use at major medical centers around the world, including The Mayo Clinic, University of
Iowa, National Institute of Health, UCLA, University of Illinois, The Royal Brompton Hospital in
London, Tokyo University Hospital, Beijing Hospital. Imatron's Ultrafast CT(R) is distributed in the
United States, Canada, Europe, and India by Siemens Medical Systems. Imatron's HeartScan
Imaging Inc. subsidiary provides Coronary Artery Disease Risk Assessment diagnostic services in a
network of Company-owned clinics. SOURCE Imatron Inc. |
