No benefit of fish oil in high-risk patients - Heartwire Mayo 2013

Milan, Italy - The supplemental use of n-3 fatty acids does not reduce the risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with multiple cardiovascular-disease risk factors [1].

These are the conclusions of the Risk and Prevention Study Collaborative Group, a collective of Italian researchers led by Maria Carla Roncaglioni (Mario Negri Institute of Pharmacological Research, Milan, Italy). In addition to having no effect on the study's primary end point in this group of patients with multiple cardiovascular risk factors or atherosclerotic disease, but no previous MI, the researchers did not observe any benefit on secondary end points, including death from coronary causes or sudden death from cardiac causes or major ventricular arrhythmias.

"Our findings provide no evidence of the usefulness of n-3 fatty acids for preventing cardiovascular death or disease in this population," write the researchers in the May 9, 2013 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Dr James Stein (University of Wisconsin, Madison), who was not affiliated with the study, said in an email to heartwire that the results are disappointing but consistent with recent studies showing no significant effect of fish-oil supplements. "Especially interesting that there was no effect even in those with low baseline intake of omega-3 fats, those not on aspirin, and those not on statins," he commented.

In the analysis, the researchers did observe a significant interaction between the efficacy of n-3 fatty acids and sex (p=0.04), with women treated with fish oil having statistically significant 18% lower risk of the primary end point when compared with women treated with placebo. However, the investigators and Stein caution that the interaction should be interpreted cautiously and might simply be due to chance.

 

Completo aquí: http://www.theheart.org/article/1536889.do