A new study has found patients may have an increased risk of developing age-related cataracts if they use cholesterol-lowering statin drugs.
The study, published in Optometry and Vision Science, found that people with type 2 diabetes also have an additional risk of cataracts similar to statin users.
The researchers analysed 6,400 patients from the University of Waterloo’s optometry clinic in 2007 to 2008. 452 of the participants were struggling with Type NBS 2 diabetes.
Even though there was a high rate of statin use among diabetes patients, the two risk factors were independent of each other. Older diabetic patients who took statins had the fastest increase risk of cataracts, and the slowest was seen in non-diabetic patients who did not take statins. Compared to the non-diabetics who did not take statins, diabetic patients taking the drug developed cataracts 5.6 years earlier on average.
The researchers said further research was required and the known benefits of statin treatment for type 2 diabetes are probably worth any increased risk of cataracts.
