Introduction
Alirocumab (trade name: Praluent) has been approved in Germany since September 2015 for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia or mixed dyslipidemia in adults. It is an option for several groups of patients:
- People who can't lower their cholesterol levels enough despite using the maximum tolerated dose of statins.
- People who can't lower their cholesterol levels enough through their diet and other medications
- People who can't have treatment with statins or who can't tolerate them due to side effects
Cholesterol is an essential raw material for our bodies. It is needed to produce certain hormones and is an important building block in cell walls. There are two types:
- “LDL” cholesterol: “LDL” stands for “low-density lipoprotein.” Cholesterol is transported in this form from the liver to where the body needs it. High levels of LDL cholesterol are associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, which is why it is sometimes referred to as “bad” cholesterol.
- “HDL” cholesterol: “HDL” stands for “high-density lipoprotein.” In this form, cholesterol is transported back to the liver from the body’s tissues. Because high levels of HDL cholesterol are associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, it is sometimes called “good” cholesterol.
Triglycerides also play an important role. They are found in food and are an important source of energy for our body.
People are considered to have hypercholesterolemia (high cholesterol) if their LDL cholesterol levels are too high. If their triglyceride levels are too high as well, it is known as mixed dyslipidemia. These people have a higher risk of cardiovascular diseases such as coronary artery disease. How high a person's actual risk is also depends on other individual risk factors too, though.
Alirocumab helps the liver to break down LDL cholesterol, and is thought to lower the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
