Vitamin E or vitamin C supplements did not differ from placebo for major cardiovascular events and mortality
H D Sesso
Dr H D Sesso, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; hsesso@hsph.harvard.edu
QUESTION
In men at lower risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), do vitamin E and vitamin C supplements reduce major CVD events?
METHODS
Design:
randomised placebo controlled trial (Physicians’ Health Study II). ClinicalTrials.gov NCT00270647.
Allocation:
unclear allocation concealment.
Blinding:
blinded (patients, clinicians, and outcome assessors)
Follow-up period:
⩽10 years (mean 8 y).
Setting:
USA.
Patients:
14 641 male physicians ⩾50 years of age (mean age 64 y). Men with a history of myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, or cancer were included. Exclusion criteria were history of cirrhosis, active liver disease, anticoagulant use, or serious illness. 5.1% of men had prevalent CVD.
Intervention:
after stratification for age, previous cancer or …
