[Primary prevention trials performed with statins prior to the JUPITER trial].

The invention of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase inhibitors, namely statins, after the mid-1980s, initiated a new era in the approach to atherosclerotic diseases. Many studies of primary prevention, secondary prevention, and plaque regression have been carried out with statins. This paper will discuss primary prevention studies that were performed with statins prior to the JUPITER trial.