Statins deemed safe from a neuropsychiatric perspective but ineffective as antidepressants in at-risk adults, Oxford study finds.
A landmark online trial published in Psychological Medicine and conducted at the University of Oxford Department of Psychiatry, has concluded that a 28-day course of Simvastatin, a widely used cholesterol-lowering medication also known as statins, does not significantly impact emotional processing, reward learning, memory, or stress hormones in adults at risk for depression.
The study, known as OxSTEP (Oxford simvaSTatin and Emotional Processing), recruited over 100 participants from across the UK who reported high levels of loneliness – a known risk factor for depression. The innovative remote trial design enabled data collection during the COVID-19 pandemic without compromising scientific rigor. Despite initial hypotheses that simvastatin might have mood-enhancing effects due to its anti-inflammatory properties, the study found no measurable psychological or cognitive benefit.
Lead author, Clinical Lecturer and Oxford Health Biomedical Research Centre (OH BRC) researcher Dr Riccardo De Giorgi said:
“This study provides reassurance about the safety of statins in people at risk for mental illness, while also tempering expectations about their potential antidepressant effects. Our null findings underscore the need to base repurposing hopes on robust experimental evidence.”
Most notably, the results align with recent large-scale studies refuting any major mental health benefits of statins, while also contributing to better understanding their safety profile in vulnerable populations.
Read the publication online here
For more information email OH BRC: ohbrcenquiries@oxfordhealth.nhs.uk
