[LDL cholesterol--why lower and lower?].

Large interventional studies with statins have confirmed that drug-lowering of LDL cholesterol by at least 25-30% is associated with a significant reduction in the cardiovascular risk. In high-risk patients, the plasma LDL cholesterol level should be < 100 mg/dl. If the levels are initially low, the aim is to achieve a reduction of at least 30-40%. More recent studies have shown that reducing the LDL cholesterol to < 70 mg/dl can stop the further growth of plaques, and can possibly even bring about their regression.