Antiinflammatory Therapy with Canakinumab for Atherosclerotic Disease

Researchers tested canakinumab, an injected prescription drug that blocks an inflammation signal. The study included 10,061 adults who had already had a heart attack and still had high C-reactive protein, a blood marker of inflammation. Participants received different doses of the drug or a placebo, an inactive injection, every three months. After about 3.7 years, the 150-milligram dose lowered the combined risk of nonfatal heart attack, nonfatal stroke, or death from heart and blood vessel disease by about 15%, but it did not lower overall death. Serious infections and deaths from infection were more common with the drug.

What this means for you: This is not a general longevity treatment or something to buy or use on your own. It may help a narrow group of people with previous heart attacks and ongoing inflammation, but its infection risks and prescription-only use require careful medical judgment.