Statins are examples of medications in which risks outweigh benefits for patients with limited prognosis. Jean Kutner and colleagues recently published in JAMA the results of a randomized clinical trial to evaluate the safety, clinical, and cost impact of discontinuing statin medications for patients in the palliative care setting. The study concluded that patients can safely discontinue statins and actually feel better when they do.
Article abstract: http://archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=2204034 ;Health News from NPR: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2015/03/23/394815325/if-youre-going-to-die-soon-do-you-really-need-statins (3/2015)
