ABSTRACT
In patients with known cardiovascular disease and those at high risk for it, physicians must begin to treat atherosclerosis earlier, with combination therapy of statins, aspirin, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, and beta-blockers. In those hospitalized with a cardiovascular event, a statin should be started in the hospital, regardless of lipid levels. Patients with diabetes should be treated as if they have preexisting cardiovascular disease.
Footnotes
↵* The author has indicated that he has received grant and research support from Pfizer, Merck, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and GlaxoSmithKline corporations. His lecture at The Cleveland Clinic Division of Medicine Grand Rounds was funded in part by an unrestricted educational grant from Pfizer.
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