It’s the worst-case scenario for patients, doctors, and pharmaceutical companies. A drug used to treat type 2 diabetes — one of the world’s biggest selling medications — has been found to have a major downside. It significantly increases the risk of heart attack and death in those who take it each day.
The drug is chemically called “Rosiglitazone,” and the biggest brand name had sales that eclipsed $3 billion worldwide last year. A study in the prestigious “New England Journal of Medicine” has, however, tossed water on this popular drug. Researchers found that Rosiglitazone increased risk of cardiovascular death by 64% and risk of heart attack by 43%.
This is clearly a serious concern. This class of drug, the journal notes, is “interesting and potentially important” in treating diabetes, one of the most common health conditions in our obesity-plagued society. But diabetes is not as dangerous as its complications, which include serious heart problems. And Rosiglitazone appears not only to provide no protection against heart disease, but actually increase the possibility.
The Food and Drug Administration has issued a safety alert. But the drug is not being pulled off the shelves just yet. It will take more studies to investigate just how Rosiglitazone works before such a decision would be made. But, needless to say, this study has raised eyebrows across the world.
The study is a meta-analysis, meaning researchers combed through a pile of past studies to see what results they had. They looked at a total of 42 studies that totaled more than 15,500 patients who took the drug and more than 12,000 who did not. (The latter provided a comparison group.)
The statistics were clear: patients prescribed Rosiglitazone had a much higher risk of heart attack and death compared to those who didn’t take it. There is an urgent need for further studies to hone in on precise answers as to how the drug affects the heart. Some experts believe diabetic medications are approved too easily. If they successfully lower blood sugar levels, then they are likely to be approved. But what about possible long-term side effects?
If you take Rosiglitazone, speak to your doctor. There is a risk in switching to new treatment, but it may be worth your while. That said, nobody knows yet if other classes of diabetes drugs could have similar effects on the heart.
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Tags: blood sugar, cure diabetes, obesity
