By Ted Rosen,MD,FADD,Editor-in-Chief
The statin class of medications has salutatory, ancillary benefits, which may facilitate cutaneous wound healing. These include anti-inflammatory effects, enhanced epithelialization, and increased neoangiogenesis. Thus, the use of statins (such as atorvastatin and simvastatin) may be considered in situations where cutaneous healing is expected to be delayed or difficult. For example, 40mg daily of simvastatin for 10 weeks—in addition to standard measures such as leg elevation and compression—led to reduced healing time for venous (stasis) leg ulcers compared to a placebo plus initiation of standard measures. This was especially dramatic for venous leg ulcers >5cm in diameter. 67% of such lesions closed in the simvastatin group, with a mean healing time of 9·17 ± 1·07 weeks, while no ulcers of this size closed in the control group. The author reports routinely using simvastatin in the management of stasis ulcers of the legs.
TO READ MORE: Evangelista MTP, et al. Simvastatin as a novel therapeutic agent for venous ulcers: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. Br J Dermatol. 2014;170(5):1151-7. doi: 10.1111/bjd.12883.
