• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• 제78권3호
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• pp.281-285
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• 2015

Statins lower the hyperlipidemia and reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events and related mortality. A 60-year-old man who was diagnosed with a transient ischemic attack was started on acetyl-L-carnitine, cilostazol, and rosuvastatin. After rosuvastatin treatment for 4 weeks, the patient presented with sudden onset fever, cough, and dyspnea. His symptoms were aggravated despite empirical antibiotic treatment. All infectious pathogens were excluded based on results of culture and polymerase chain reaction of the bronchoscopic wash specimens. Chest radiography showed diffuse ground-glass opacities in both lungs, along with several subpleural ground-glass opacity nodules; and a foamy alveolar macrophage appearance was confirmed on bronchoalveolar lavage. We suspected rosuvastatin-induced lung injury, discontinued rosuvastatin and initiated prednisolone 1 mg/kg tapered over 2weeks. After initiating steroid therapy, his symptoms and radiologic findings significantly improved. We suggest that clinicians should be aware of the potential for rosuvastatin-induced lung injury.

• 한국임상약학회지
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• 제27권3호
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• pp.136-142
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• 2017

Background: Dementia is one of important social and economic healthcare issues in the aging age. Therefore, it signifies to analyze the relationship between chronic disease or cardiovascular drug use and the incidence of dementia to establish a basis for increasing or preventing the risk of dementia. The purpose of this study was to investigate the correlation between the prevalence of chronic diseases and the use of cardiovascular drugs in patients diagnosed with dementia. Methods: In this study, we used data from sample of elderly patients from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service. We analyzed by logistic regression analysis with age, gender, and medication as covariates. KCD-7 was used to diagnosis of the disease, and drugs were analyzed using ATC codes and Korean standardized drug classification codes. Results: A total of 1,276,331 patients were analyzed in the sample of the elderly population, of which 532,075 (41.7%) were male and 744,256 (58.3%) were female. The patients have the higher risk of dementia in the older, women, and lower socioeconomically status. Cerebral infarction and ischemic heart disease increases risk of dementia. Patients taking statins, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) or angiotensin II receptor antagonists (ARB) showed low incidence of dementia. Conclusion: This study has been shown that ACEI, ARB, and statin drugs may associate with lower incidence of Alzheimer's and other dementia except vascular dementia.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• 제29권2호
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• pp.77-82
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• 2012

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is an important cellular fuel sensor. Its activation requires phosphorylation at Thr-172, which resides in the activation loop of the ${\alpha}1$ and ${\alpha}2$ subunits. Several AMPK upstream kinases are capable of phosphorylating AMPK at Thr-172, including LKB1 and CaMKK${\beta}$ ($Ca^{2+}$/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase${\beta}$). AMPK has been implicated in the regulation of physiological signals, such as in the inhibition of cholesterol fatty acid, and protein synthesis, and enhancement of glucose uptake and blood flow. AMPK activation also exhibits several salutary effects on the vascular function and improves vascular abnormalities. AMPK is modulated by numerous hormones and cytokines that regulate the energy balance in the whole body. These hormone and cytokines include leptin, adiponectin, ghrelin, and even thyroid hormones. Moreover, AMPK is activated by several drugs and xenobiotics. Some of these are in being clinically used to treat type 2 diabetes (e.g., metformin and thiazolidinediones), hypertension (e.g., nifedipine and losartan), and impaired blood flow (e.g., aspirin, statins, and cilostazol). I reviewed the precise mechanisms of the AMPK activation pathway and AMPK-modulating drugs.

• 대한한의학회지
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• 제30권6호
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• pp.103-111
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• 2009

Objectives: To investigate the possibility of GamiSamgieum (SGMX) as a combination therapy with statins on hyperlipidemia using an animal model. Methods: Forty eight ICR mice (male) were divided into six groups of eight mice each: naive, induced, Lipitor 5 mg/kg, Lipitor 5 mg/kg plus SGMX 100 mg/kg, Lipitor 10 mg/kg, and Lipitor 10 mg/kg plus SGMX mg/kg treatment group. Hyperlipidemia was induced by feeding a purified high fat diet for all groups (except naive) along with treatment of drugs for 6 weeks, and then biological parameters were examined on the last experiential day. Results: Lipitor treatment lowered total cholesterol and increased HDL-cholesterol compared to the induced group with no statistical significance. However, co-treatment of SGMX with Lipitor revealed synergic effects on total cholesterol and HDL-cholesterol significantly (P < 0.05) in both. SGMX co-treatment also significantly protected liver tissues from the oxidative stress in liver tissues (P < 0.05) and augmented inhibitory effect of Lipitor against fat accumulation in the body. Conclusion: These results indicate the possibility of that SGMX can be used for patients having hyperlipidemia as a combination therapy with statin drugs.

• 한국임상약학회지
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• 제29권2호
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• pp.133-137
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• 2019

Atorvastatin is one of the most widely prescribed medications for dyslipidemia treatment. In Korea, post combined therapy with ezetimibe, a 73-year-old woman was reported by a community pharmacy to have experienced visual field defect, which recovered after drug discontinuation. She had never experienced this symptom before, and several studies have reported an association between use of statins and visual disorders such as blurred vision, diplopia, and cataract. Blockage of cholesterol accumulation, oxidative stress, or myopathy is expected to be a cause of this symptom. Naranjo scale, Korean causality assessment algorithm (Ver.2), and World Health Organization-Uppsala Monitoring Center (WHO-UMC) criteria were the three tools used to determine causality between the visual disorder and atorvastatin. The results represent 'probable', 'certain', and 'probable/likely' causality, respectively. Our results, in combination with a review of literature, indicate that ocular adverse effects are highly likely related to atorvastatin.

• 대한의사협회지
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• 제61권12호
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• pp.758-764
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• 2018

Dementia is a clinical syndrome characterized by a cluster of symptoms and signs that manifest as difficulties in cognitive functions such as memory, psychological and psychiatric changes, and impairments in activities of daily living. As a result of worldwide trends of population aging, dementia has had a huge impact on public health in almost all countries. Disease modification therapies for dementia have not yet been developed. However, pharmacotherapy is essential in patients with dementia to combat delays in their cognitive and functional decline. In this article, we review the current pharmacotherapy for dementia. Three acetylcholinesterase inhibitors-donepezil, rivastigmine, galantamine-and memantine are the only medications that have been approved for the treatment of dementia. We present the indications, dose recommendations, side effects, and criteria for National Health Insurance coverage in Korea of these medications for dementia treatment. Although the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in Korea has not approved any medications for managing the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia, some antipsychotics and antidepressants have been studied and used clinically for those purposes. Clinicians may consider vitamin E, Ginkgo biloba extract, choline alfoscerate, or omega-3 fatty acids as additional treatment options. Non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs, estrogen hormone therapy, and statins are not generally recommended for dementia treatment. We believe that our findings will aid clinicians in the treatment of patients with cognitive decline.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제29권3호
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• pp.473-481
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• 2019

Statins are a class of lipid-lowering drugs commonly used in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases. However, statin therapy presents many limitations, which have led to an increased interest in non-drug therapies, such as probiotics, to improve blood cholesterol levels. Indeed, probiotic strains such as Lactobacillus acidophilus have been found to improve blood lipid profiles, especially in reducing total cholesterol and LDL-C levels. In this study, we established a high-cholesterol rat model and studied the effect of Lactobacillus acidophilus administration alone or in combination with rosuvastatin. We were able to show that Lactobacillus exerts a cholesterol-lowering effect. Additionally, we observed that when administered together, rosuvastin and Lactobacillus exert a combined cholesterol-lowering effect. Altogether, our data advocate for the possibility of establishing probiotics as non-drug supplements for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia.

• 셀메드
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• 제3권3호
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• pp.21.1-21.5
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• 2013

Cholesterol gallstones are a digestive disease of high prevalence that has many risk factors; for this reason, research has focused mainly on how to prevent it rather than how to treat it. Many molecules of the hepatic, bile and intestinal systems are involved in the pathophysiology of this disease, making it very difficult to find a therapeutic target. The pharmacological treatment is limited, so when gallstones generate symptoms, medical treatment indicates gallbladder removal. Ursodeoxycholic acid is used to dissolve cholesterol stones, and ezetimibe and statins are other drugs with possible applications in the treatment of this disease. Given the small number of drugs that have been developed for treating this disease, the research of natural products becomes of paramount importance. Resources such as black radish, glucosinolates, fenugreek, capsaicin, curcumin, garlic, and onion, have all shown significant effects in the prevention and treatment of cholesterol gallstones. In this review, we made a synthesis of the scientific reports that deal with these natural products and that can serve as antecedents for finding a way to treat the most common disease of the gallbladder.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• 제24권2호
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• pp.137-147
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• 2020

Ulcerative colitis (UC) is associated with intestinal immune imbalance and inflammatory response. Because dehydrolovastatin (DLVT), a derivative of lovastatin, has been recently shown to inhibit inflammation and relieve immune arthritis induced by chemical stimuli, we studied its effect and possible mechanism on UC induced by dextran sulfate sodium. The BALB/c mice were classified into six groups: normal control group, model group, DLVT high dose group, DLVT low dose group, salazosulfapyridine (SASP) group and lovastatin (LVT) group. The disease activity indices of UC and pathological changes were investigated. The myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity in colon tissue and inflammatory factors such as IL-6, IL-10, IL-17, and TNF-α in the serum were analyzed by ELISA, while the expression of NF-κB p65 protein in colon tissue was detected by immunohistochemistry and western blot. DLVT relieved the disease activity indices and pathological damage of the UC mice. Furthermore, DLVT significantly decreased MPO activity and improved the imbalance of inflammatory cytokines through inhibiting the expression of NF-κB p65. Meanwhile, the positive drug of SASP has a similar effect to DLVT, but the effect of DLVT in both decreasing IL-17, TNF-α, and increasing IL-10 was significantly stronger than that of SASP. These results suggest that DLVT may ameliorates the symptoms of UC.

• Advances in Traditional Medicine
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• 제10권4호
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• pp.239-253
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• 2010

Coenzyme $Q_{10}$ ($CoQ_{10}$, or ubiquinone) is an electron carrier of the mitochondrial respiratory chain (electron transport chain) with antioxidant properties. In view of the involvement of $CoQ_{10}$ in oxidative phosphorylation and cellular antioxidant protection a deficiency in this quinone would be expected to contribute to disease pathophysiology by causing a failure in energy metabolism and antioxidant status. Indeed, a deficit in $CoQ_{10}$ status has been determined in a number of neuromuscular and neurodegenerative disorders. Primary disorders of $CoQ_{10}$ biosynthesis are potentially treatable conditions and therefore a high degree of clinical awareness about this condition is essential. A secondary loss of $CoQ_{10}$ status following HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor (statins) treatment has been implicated in the pathophysiology of the myotoxicity associated with this pharmacotherapy. $CoQ_{10}$ and its analogue, idebenone, have been widely used in the treatment of neurodegenerative and neuromuscular disorders. These compounds could potentially play a role in the treatment of mitochondrial disorders, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Friedreich's ataxia, and other conditions which have been linked to mitochondrial dysfunction. This article reviews the physiological roles of $CoQ_{10}$, as well as the rationale and the role in clinical practice of $CoQ_{10}$ supplementation in different neurological diseases, from primary $CoQ_{10}$ deficiency to neurodegenerative disorders. These will help in future for treatment of patients suffering from neurodegenerative disease.