Why the study?
Does clofibrate and niacin reduce myocardial infarction in patients with coronary heart disease?
Does clofibrate and niacin reduce myocardial infarction in patients with coronary heart disease?
A letter to the editor highlights a statistically significant reduction in myocardial infarction with clofibrate and niacin versus placebo in the Coronary Drug Project, which was not emphasized in the original report.
To the Editor.— The data on "Clofibrate and Niacin in Coronary Heart Disease" (231:360-381, 1975) is extensive and requires considerable time to analyze in respect to the conclusions made by the Coronary Drug Project (CDP) Research Group. The evidence presented by ECG data regarding infarction during the study term is particularly noteworthy since, as presented, it appears to be at odds with the negative recommendations given by the CDP regarding both of the medications under evaluation. On review of the ECG and clinical data in the CDP report, there is an apparently larger percentage of subjects receiving placebo that had myocardial infarction during the study than of those receiving clofibrate and niacin. This difference is statistically significant (P<.005) but was not highlighted in the CDP report. The CDP's Table 11 provides data from a group of subjects with ECG pattern worsening during the study (line A of our Table). A
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Cesar A. Cáceres (1978) studied this question.
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