Treatment Patterns and Lipid Profile in Patients with Familial Hypercholesterolemia in Japan

AIM: To evaluate the epidemiology and real-world treatment patterns associated with lipid-modifying therapies (LMTs) among groups of Japanese patients with familial hypercholesterolemia (FH). METHODS: A retrospective observational study was conducted using an electronic hospital-based administrative claims database and electronic medical records. Patients with existing diagnosis of FH (FH-D) and patients with suspected FH (FH-S) defined by low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) ≥190 mg/dL were included, and medical records of hospitals across Japan were analyzed to assess the diagnostic status, management of LDL-C levels, and treatment patterns. RESULTS: Among the 3,495 patients who met the inclusion criteria, 193 patients were FH-D and 3,339 patients were FH-S. Among them, 83.5% had not achieved the LDL-C of ＜100 mg/dL recommended for patients with FH at the index date. Mean LDL-C levels for all patients and for FH-D and FH-S patients were 145.8 mg/dL, 119.2 mg/dL, and 147.6 mg/dL, respectively. 44.5% of the patients were not currently treated with LMTs. High-intensity statins were used only in 19.2% and 2.3% of the FH-D and FH-S patients, respectively. Furthermore, among the FH-D and FH-S statin-treated patients, 61 (69.3%) and 1,059 (89.7%) remained on monotherapy even when their LDL-C was ≥100 mg/dL. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment and management of LDL-C in Japanese FH patients remain suboptimal. The results suggest that FH is underdiagnosed in real-world, routine clinical practice in Japan. There is an urgent need to improve the diagnostic rate of FH and to provide the appropriate therapy to achieve the recommended LDL-C levels of ＜100 mg/dL or a more than 50% reduction for patients with FH in Japan.