Debate continues over role of statins in treatment of heart disease

A prescription to buy Lipitor has been shown to significantly lower a person's cholesterol levels, which may be linked to a reduction in their risk of suffering a heart attack or stroke. Yet there is still considerable debate over how the medications should be used.

Some argue that statins should not be prescribed to individuals whose only cardiovascular risk factor is high cholesterol. This condition by itself is unlikely to cause a heart attack or stroke, and unnecessarily treating it could slightly increase the risk of side effects.

However, others say that given the high number of people who die from heart disease each year, it is critical to get statins to more patients. Dr. Roger Blumenthal, a physician with Johns Hopkins University, told the Wall Street Journal that studies have shown that taking statins can reduce a patient's risk of suffering a heart attack by 30 to 40 percent.

"It makes no sense why a medication that slows the progression of hardening of the arteries would be harmful the day or week before a heart attack, but helpful the day or week after a heart attack," he told the news source.

Currently, many doctors do err on the side of caution and provide patients with a prescription to buy Lipitor, which is the top selling medication of all time.