This study was designed to evaluate the clinical efficasy of lovastatin, HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, in patients with hypercholesterolemia.

Lovastatin 20 to 80 mg were administered once daily for 12 weeks in twenty five patients(11 male, 14 famale ; nine patients with familial hypercholesterolemia) with hypercholesterolemia(>240mg/dl). Compared with pretreatment levels, lovastatin significantly decreased levels of total cholesterol(309±46mg/dl versus 201±37mg/dl) by 35%, LDL-cholesterol(230±48mg/dl versus 125±40mg/dl) by 46% and triglyceride(170±76 versus 142±66mg/dl) by 11% (p<0.05) with significantly decreased levels of total-cholesterol/HDL-cholesterol ratio(7.4±2.1 versue 4.6±1.5) and LDL-cholesterol/HDL-cholesterol ratio(5.6±1.9 versue 2.9±1.4) (p<0.005 except triglyceride, respectively). The level of Apo B(183±32mg/dl versus 114±26mg/dl) was decreased significantly by 37%(p<0.005) with significantly decreased level of Apo A-1(115±22 to 122±26mg/dl) was increased significantly by 6%(p<0.05). No serious side effects were found.

Results from the present study show that lovastatin is an effective and well-tolerated cholesterol-lowering agent.