Niacin, a drug that increases good cholesterol in people, is not beneficial for strokes and heart diseases. This analysis led U.S. officials to abruptly stop a major study related to the drug.

Niacin is actually a variant of vitamin B and many doctors prescribe it to protect heart related problems. But the failure of study is a major disappointment and a big setback in quest to utilize good cholesterol to drive away bad one.

“This sends us a bit back to the drawing board,” said Dr. Susan Shurin, cardiovascular chief at the National Institutes of Health.

LDL, known as bad cholesterol, is one of the major reasons of artery clogs. Many statin drugs including Lipitor and Zocor are foundation drugs in fighting bad cholesterol but statin users also suffer heart attacks.

HDL, good kind cholesterol, carries fat to liver which is then disposed off. This way it fight artery clog. This is the reason that people with low levels of HDL are also prone to heart problems.

So, scientists are trying to test whether HDL boosting drugs are also helpful in providing extra protection to heart patients or not.

The latest study tested a form of niacin, Abbott Laboratories’ Niaspan. Previous studies regarding the drug have revealed that it stimulates good cholesterol but nobody knew whether it resulted in lesser heart attacks.

Around 3500 people from U.S. and Canada were studied by researchers. They had controlled levels of bad cholesterol but were at risk because of low levels of HDL. They were asked to take niacin.

As per expectations, niacin helped increase good cholesterol but unfortunately didn’t help in reducing heart attacks and strokes, said the NIH.
The finding “is unexpected and a striking contrast to the results of previous trials,” said Dr. Jeffrey Probstfield of the University of Washington, who helped lead the study.

Because of these findings, NIH stopped its study 18 months before the scheduled time.

Adding to disappointment, small increase in heart strokes was observed in niacin users. Though NIH is not sure whether it is because of the drug or mere coincidence. As previous studies also haven’t revealed any stroke increase from niacin, it may be because of ‘chance’ only.

According to Dr. Robert Eckel, a University of Colorado cardiologist and American Heart Association spokesman, people having low LDL don’t require extra niacin prescription.

Study co-leader Dr. William Boden of the University at Buffalo added that the effect of niacin on people who are not diagnosed with heart disease yet taking the drug as a preventive measure is not clear. These findings can’t be generalized, he further stated.