How this fits in

English national guidance recommends the use of high-intensity statins, capable of reducing low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol by ≥40%. Studies in subsets of general practice data have shown that compliance at the time of guideline release was low, but has not been documented since. The present study of the complete population of English general practice shows improving guideline compliance, but that prescribing of low-intensity statins remains common, with 45% of prescriptions below the recommended strength, and there is very substantial variation between practices. Some practices have exhibited rapid positive change in prescribing, which indicates that better guideline compliance could readily be achieved. The authors have produced a live-data tool allowing anyone to explore any practice’s current statin prescribing behaviour.