Association of higher potency statin use with risk of osteoporosis and fractures in patients with stroke in a Korean nationwide cohort study

This population-based cohort study aimed to evaluate the risk of osteoporosis and fractures associated with higher-potency statin use compared to lower-potency statin use in patients with stroke, using data from the Health Insurance and Review Assessment database of South Korea (2010-2019). Patients who received statin within 30 days after hospitalization for a new-onset stroke (n = 276,911) were divided into higher-potency (n = 212,215, 76.6%) or lower-potency (n = 64,696, 23.4%) statin initiation groups. The primary outcome was a composite of osteoporosis and osteoporotic fractures. Secondary outcomes were individual components of the primary outcome, including osteoporosis, vertebral fracture, hip fracture, and non-hip non-vertebral fracture. Cox proportional hazard models weighted by standardized morbidity ratios were used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). The risk of the composite outcome (HR 0.95, 95% CI 0.93-0.97), osteoporosis (0.93, 0.90-0.96), vertebral fracture (0.95, 0.91-0.99), and hip fracture (0.89, 0.84-0.95) were significantly lower in higher-potency statin users, while the risk for non-hip non-vertebral fracture was not significant (0.98, 0.95-1.02). The use of higher-potency statins compared to lower-potency statins was associated with a lower risk of osteoporosis, vertebral fracture, and hip fracture in patients with stroke.