Ezetimibe reimbursement – who is eligible for treatment? Case report

Abstract

In the Polish healthcare system, ezetimibe may be prescribed with reimbursement to patients at high cardiovascular risk for the prevention of cardiovascular events. Reimbursement for ezetimibe does not require prior failure of statin monotherapy. In clinical practice, ezetimibe is most commonly added to ineffective therapy with the highest tolerated dose of a statin. In very high-risk and high-risk patients requiring rapid reduction of LDL-C levels, it is possible to initiate therapy with a statin and ezetimibe immediately. Professional societies recommend starting with combination therapy when statin monotherapy alone fails to achieve the target and the baseline LDL-C level is <70 mg/dl or <55 mg/dl.