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Convicted B.C. double murderer given full parole
A man convicted in the notorious double murder of two women in Tsawwassen in 1990 when he was a teenager has been granted full parole.
Cholesterol medication has been linked to reduced risk of death from COVID-19, according to a new, large-population study.
Statins are often prescribed by doctors to help lower cholesterol levels in the blood and can help prevent cardiovascular events such as heart attacks and stroke.
"Our results suggest that statin treatment can have a moderate prophylactic effect on COVID-19 mortality," Rita Bergqvist, medical student at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and co-author of the study, said in a news release.
Previous studies attempting to ascertain a relationship between use of the drugs and COVID-19 deaths did not provide concrete answers. This led researchers to carry out the largest population study to date on the relationship between statins and COVID-19 mortality.
The study, published Thursday in the journal PLOS Medicine, analyzed the medical data of all 963,876 residents in the Stockholm area aged 45 and up from March 1, 2020, to Nov. 11, 2020. Among them, 169,642 were prescribed statins between March 1, 2019 and Feb. 29, 2020.
Those who were prescribed statins were older on average (71 years old versus 58 years old), more often diagnosed with comorbidities (23.3 per cent versus 1.6 per cent) and more frequently on anticoagulant and antihypertensive treatments, among other factors.
A total of 2,545 residents from the entire cohort died from COVID-19 during the analysis period, including 765 of those prescribed statins (0.45 per cent of group) and 1,780 who weren't (0.2 per cent of group).
After adjustments were made with respect to relevant medical data, such as pre-existing medical conditions, results showed that statin treatment was actually associated with a slightly lower risk of dying from COVID-19. The correlation also didn't vary significantly between risk groups.
"All in all, our findings support the continued use of statins for conditions such as cardiovascular disease and high levels of blood lipids in line with current recommendations during the COVID-19 pandemic," said Viktor Ahlqvist, co-author and doctoral student at the university's global public health department.
It should be noted, the authors say, that randomized studies will need to be conducted to determine if there is a causal relationship.
One limitation of the study was that it used prescription data while not being able to account for actual drug use. The researchers were also not able to control for risk factors, such as smoking and high BMI, only diagnosed health status.
A man convicted in the notorious double murder of two women in Tsawwassen in 1990 when he was a teenager has been granted full parole.
The risk to communities along the Fraser and Chilcotin rivers if a dam created by a massive landslide is breached is uncertain but has the potential to be 'significant,' according to officials.
Canadians looking to stock up on food for an emergency can order ready-made tubs from Costco online.
One person was killed and others were hurt when an event tent collapsed on hundreds of people north Edmonton on Wednesday.
A few days after moving into his North Vancouver neighborhood Paul Wiens was enjoying one of the perks – cutting through the scenic BCMC trail on his way to grab a coffee at Starbucks – when he had an unexpected but "magical" encounter.
Liberal MP Anita Vandenbeld fell short of an apology after instigating a fracas on Wednesday that led two witnesses testifying about violence against women to storm out of a parliamentary committee hearing.
Canadian-born Paul Whelan and an honorary Canadian citizen were set free Thursday as the United States and Russia completed their largest prisoner swap in post-Soviet history.
Canadian swimmer Summer McIntosh won her second Olympic gold medal in Paris with a victory in the women's 200-metre butterfly.
The red, white and green of Italy’s Air Force graced the skies above Toronto for the first time in nearly 40 years during a flyover Thursday.
A few days after moving into his North Vancouver neighborhood Paul Wiens was enjoying one of the perks – cutting through the scenic BCMC trail on his way to grab a coffee at Starbucks – when he had an unexpected but "magical" encounter.
It was a memorable day for many near the Bay of Fundy Monday when a Mola mola found its way to the Parrsboro Harbour in Nova Scotia.
A cat that went missing in Toronto back in 2011 has finally been reunited with its owner.
One golf course, two men, 12 hours and 333 holes of golf played. That's how the 13th annual Marathon Monday shaped up for Patrick Law and Dylan Thornborough, which ended up being an unofficial world record.
A woman who lives east of Montreal in Repentigny came home to a pool party on Sunday after a family of five had rented it on the Swimply app without the consent of the homeowner.
A CFL fan has unofficially broken the world record for watching CFL home games at all nine of Canada’s stadiums in the shortest amount of time.
The Anne Murray Centre in Springhill, N.S., marked its 35th anniversary over the weekend drawing dozens to the event from around the globe.
Imani Nadir says she looked high and low for a hairdresser when she moved to Montreal in 2022. Finally, after six months of making calls and sending emails, the 20-year-old came across Two Horses, a Montreal hair salon offering specialized services to women who wear face or head coverings.
As fire threatened people in Jasper National Park, Colleen Knull sprung into action.