In patients with mixed
dyslipidemia characterized by increased
triglycerides (TG), decreased
high-density lipoprotein (
HDL) cholesterol, and increased
low-density lipoprotein (
LDL) cholesterol, monotherapy with
lipid-altering drugs often fails to achieve all
lipid targets. This multicenter, double-blind, active-controlled study evaluated
ABT-335 (
fenofibric acid) in combination with 2 doses of
atorvastatin in patients with mixed
dyslipidemia. A total of 613 patients with
LDL cholesterol > or =130 mg/dl, TG > or =150 mg/dl, and
HDL cholesterol <40 mg/dl for men and <50 mg/dl for women were randomly assigned to
ABT-335 (135 mg),
atorvastatin (20, 40, or 80 mg), or combination
therapy (
ABT-335 +
atorvastatin 20 or 40 mg) and treated for 12 weeks. Combination
therapy with
ABT-335 +
atorvastatin 20 mg resulted in significantly greater improvements in TG (-45.6% vs -16.5%) and
HDL cholesterol (14.0% vs 6.3%) compared with
atorvastatin 20 mg and
LDL cholesterol (-33.7% vs -3.4%) compared with
ABT-335. Similarly, significantly greater improvements were observed with
ABT-335 +
atorvastatin 40 mg in TG (-42.1% vs -23.2%) and
HDL cholesterol (12.6% vs 5.3%) compared with
atorvastatin 40 mg and
LDL cholesterol (-35.4% vs -3.4%) compared with
ABT-335 monotherapy. Combination
therapy also improved multiple secondary variables. Combination
therapy was generally well tolerated with a safety profile consistent with those of
ABT-335 and
atorvastatin monotherapies. No
rhabdomyolysis was reported. In conclusion,
ABT-335 +
atorvastatin combination
therapy resulted in more effective control of multiple
lipid parameters than either monotherapy and may be an appropriate
therapy for patients with mixed
dyslipidemia.