Effects of simvastatin combined with ezetimibe on testosterone and blood glucose in male patients with stable coronary artery disease

Abstract:

Objective：To evaluate the effect of simvastatin combined with ezetimibe on testosterone values in male patients with stable coronary artery disease（SCAD） and without diabetes；to observe the blood glucose level after the combined therapy. Methods：A sin－gle-center，randomized，open-label trial involving 90 patients was conducted. The patients were randomized into two groups：the trial group received 40 mg per day of simvastatin plus 10 mg per day of ezetimibe and the control group received simvastatin 40 mg per day alone；the treatment in both groups lasted for 12 weeks. Testosterone，fasting blood glucose（FBG），glycosylated hemoglobin A1c（HbA1c），lipid profiles were determined at the enrollment and at the end of the treatment. Results：Both treatments were equally effective in increasing total cholesterol（TC） and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol（LDL-C）（P＜0.05）. TC and LDL-C levels were lowered in trial group than in control group（P＜0.05）. At the end of study，testosterone levels remained unchanged in control group and slightly decreased in trial group（P=0.085）. No explicit elevation in FBG or HbA1c was observed in both groups after the treatment. Safety and tolerability profiles were similar in the two groups. Conclusion：Simvastatin 40 mg combined with ezetimibe 10 mg can reduce LDL-C without affecting testosterone levels. No side effect in glycometabolism is observed in the short term.