Study Shows Heart Failure Risk

The researchers note that they can not yet say if there is an association between Avandia and heart attacks or Avandia and heart disease in general. However, the researchers report an association between Avandia and heart failure, and more than twice as many cases of heart failure in patients taking Avandia for diabetes other types of drugs. In June, the FDA announced that Avandia diabetes and another drug, Actos, will soon carry a "black box" warning about the risk of heart failure. An editorial published with the study urged patients not to stop taking Avandia on their own, but talk to their doctor about the Avandia risks and benefits. The debate Avandia-risk heart headlines in May, when other researchers suggested that Avandia may increase the risk of heart attack and death due to heart disease. Avandia 'manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline, has called those findings flawed. Avandia and heart problems studied Today, the newspaper has just made interim results of six years Avandia study sponsored by GlaxoSmithKline. The interim results of the study will cover the first 3.75 years. The data include 4,447 patients with type 2 diabetes in Europe and Australia, which could not adequately control their blood sugar with the diabetes drug metformin or sulfonylurea. Half of the patients had Avandia and a combination of metformin and sulfonylurea. By comparison, other patients took metformin - sulfonylurea drug combination without Avandia. Patients were aged 58 on average. Beyond their diabetes, they were generally in good health. The researchers included Philip Home, DM, DPhil, England and Newcastle Newcastle University Diabetes Center. They followed hospital or death from any cardiovascular problems. Avandia heart results of the study The study showed no increased risk of heart attack or cardiac problems generally in patients taking Avandia, compared to those not taking Avandia. However, heart failure was 2.15 times more frequent in the group Avandia. But there are three other points to consider. Firstly, the time is relatively short. Secondly, the researchers were unable to detect 10% of patients for follow-up. Thirdly, relatively few patients died or were hospitalized for cardiovascular problems. These limitations make it difficult to form any firm conclusions from the study of data intermediaries. "The final report will be broader," write the researchers. Avandia heart risks? Other Views The study is accompanied by three editorials on Avandia and heart risks. The three editorials conclude that Avandia uncertainty about its effects on heart health. "When it comes to patient safety," first, do no harm "should override any presumption of innocence," writes columnist David Nathan, MD, of Harvard Medical School and the Center diabetes at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. In the newspaper, Nathan note financial ties to pharmaceutical companies Pfizer, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi Aventis. Another editorial suggests weighing the pros and cons of Avandia for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. "Together, patients and physicians can decide whether or not to suspend the use of rosiglitazone [Avandia the active ingredient]," indicates that the editorial, written by doctors with Bruce Psaty, MD, Ph . D., University of Washington Cardiovascular Health Research Unit.