HMG-COA reductase inhibitors: An opportunity for the improvement of imatinib safety. An experimental study in rat pulmonary hypertension.

Background: Co-administration of statin with imatinib is thought to result in greater improvement in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) than imatinib treatment alone, and hence may allow greater effectiveness of imatinib therapy at lower doses.

Methods: The effects of imanitib at dose of 20 and 50mg/kg bw given together with rosuvastatin or simvastatin were investigated with respect to right ventricle pressure (RVP), arterial blood pressure and right ventricle hypertrophy (RVH) in experimental monocrotaline (MCT)-induced pulmonary hypertension. Fourteen days after MCT injection, male rats were treated orally for another 14 days with imatinib, statin or a combination of the two.