Table 3.
Selected Baseline Characteristics of the Healthy Cohort of Statin Users and Nonusers
| Statin nonusers no. (%) (n = 21,988) | statin users no. (%) (n = 3 982) | P value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years), mean ± SD | 42.6 ± 9.8 | 54.4 ± 11.7 | <0.001 |
| Female sex, | 9915 (45.1) | 1520 (38.2) | <0.001 |
| Comorbidities in baseline period | |||
| Smoking | 1062 (4.8) | 304 (7.6) | <0.001 |
| Overweight/obese | 1812 (8.2) | 567 (14.2) | <0.001 |
| Hypertension | 3116 (14.2) | 2252 (56.6) | <0.001 |
| Asthma | 625 (2.8) | 115 (2.9) | 0.88 |
| Osteoarthritis, arthropathy, or back disorder | 8097 (36.8) | 1919 (48.2) | <0.001 |
| Osteoporosis | 258 (1.2) | 149 (3.7) | <0.001 |
| Health care utilization at baseline | |||
| Number of inpatient admissions during baseline period: mean ± SD | 0.10 ± 0.37 | 0.09 ± 0.34 | 0.006 |
| Number of outpatient medical encounters during baseline period: mean ± SD | 17.1 ± 18.1 | 22.1 ± 19.9 | <0.001 |
| Number of encounters for immunization during baseline period: mean ± SD | 0.57 ± 1.4 | 0.41 ± 1.1 | <0.001 |
| Medications at baseline | |||
| Beta-blocker | 822 (3.7) | 650 (16.3) | <0.001 |
| Diuretic | 1495 (6.8) | 1008 (25.3) | <0.001 |
| ACE/ARB | 1431 (6.5) | 1260 (31.6) | <0.001 |
| Calcium channel blocker | 652 (3.0) | 566 (14.2) | <0.001 |
| Proton pump inhibitor | 2,915 (13.3) | 1140 (28.6) | <0.001 |
| Aspirin | 1083 (4.9) | 1268 (31.8) | <0.001 |
| NSAID | 13,272 (60.4) | 2288 (57.5) | 0.001 |
| Bisphosphonate | 475 (2.2) | 272 (6.8) | <0.001 |
| SSRI | 2336 (10.6) | 578 (14.5) | <0.001 |
| Hormone replacement therapy | 1,532 (7.0) | 478 (12.0) | < 0.001 |
| Testosterone | 41 (0.2) | 19 (0.1) | 0.002 |
| Oral hypoglycemic | 61 (0.3) | 22 (0.6) | 0.009 |
| Warfarin | 39 (0.2) | 21 (0.5) | <0.001 |
| Mean LDL-C in mg/dL during baseline period: mean ± SD a | 112 ± 26 | 122 ± 33 | <0.0001 |
| Mean HDL-C in mg/dL during baseline period: mean ± SD a | 58 ± 17 | 54 ± 15 | <0.0001 |
ACE/ARB angiotensin receptor blockers and angiotensin-converting-enzyme inhibitors, AHRQ-CSS Agency for Health Research and Quality Clinical Classifications Software,15 NSAID non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, SD standard deviation, SSRI selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
aLipid measurements represent the mean value for each patient throughout the baseline period; these laboratory measurements were only available in 1946 statin users and 3455 nonusers. Lipid measurements were not included in propensity score matching