Efficacy and safety of evolocumab in statin-treated patients with cardiovascular risk factors: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Mayank Jha, Siddharth Pravin Agrawal, Darshilkumar Maheta, Priyadarshini Bhattacharjee, Hritvik Jain, Jerome Zacks, William H. Frishman, Wilbert S. Aronow
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the lipid-lowering efficacy and safety of evolocumab in statin-treated patients at high cardiovascular risk, focusing on changes in LDL-C, TG, ApoB, HDL-C, and Lp(a) after 12 weeks. METHODS: A comprehensive search identified randomized controlled trials comparing evolocumab to placebo in adults on statin therapy. Studies reporting baseline and 12-week lipid and safety data were included. Risk of bias was assessed using the Cochrane tool. Random-effects models were used to calculate mean differences (MD) or odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). RESULTS: Five trials with 4,009 participants were analyzed. Evolocumab significantly reduced LDL-C (MD: -64.67; 95% CI: -66.72 to -62.61), TG, ApoB, and Lp(a), and increased HDL-C. No significant difference was observed in total TEAEs (OR: 0.97; 95% CI: 0.84 to 1.14) or serious TEAEs (OR: 1.23; 95% CI: 0.80 to 1.89) versus placebo. CONCLUSIONS: Evolocumab offers robust lipid-lowering benefits with a safety profile comparable to placebo in statin-treated patients. Limitations include short follow-up and variable statin regimens. Further long-term studies are needed to confirm cardiovascular outcome benefits. PROTOCOL REGISTRATION: www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero identifier is CRD42024543525.