Discovery and development of statins walls of people that died from occlusive vascular diseases, like myocardial infarction. The cholesterol was found to be responsible for the thickening of the arterial walls and thus decreasing the radius in the arteries which leads in most cases to hypertension and increased risk of occlusive vascular diseases. In the 1950s the Framingham heart study led by Dawber revealed the correlation between high blood cholesterol levels and coronary heart diseases. Following up from that study the researchers explored a novel way to lower blood cholesterol levels without modifying the diet and lifestyle of subjects suffering with elevated blood cholesterol levels.
Specialty drugs in the United States distribution network". The price of specialty drugs compared to non-specialty drugs is very high, "more than $1,000 per 30-day supply". Specialty drugs cover over forty therapeutic categories and special disease states with over 500 drugs. Vogenberg claims that there is no standard definition of a specialty drug which is one of the reasons they are difficult to manage. "[T]hose pharmaceuticals that usually require special handling, administration, unique inventory management, and a high level of patient monitoring and support to consumers with specific chronic conditions, acute events, or complex therapies, and provides comprehensive patient education services and coordination with the patient