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Study Finds Avandia Safety Risks Higher Than Peer Drugs Including Actos

By Katie Kelley

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 16Dec2008 Word count: 488 Viewed: 154 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

A study recently published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that Avandia, a type 2 diabetes drug, may be "riskier than Actos, another drug in the same class," according to an article by U.S. News & World Report.

Avandia has been shrouded in a cloud of controversy since an article in 2007 from the New England Journal of Medicine reported that the drug may be the cause of increased heart disease and heart failure among patients. While the article received much attention and was followed by several additional studies confirming the alleged side effects, the drug remained on the market following a May 2007 Food and Drug Administration health advisory. Now, however, patients who consume Avandia may be switching to its counterpart, Actos, as both are part of the drug class known as thiazolidinediones, but Actos is apparently less risky especially among elderly diabetic patients aged 65 years of age and older.

The study was in part funded by the American Heart Association (AHA), Amgen, which is a biotechnology firm, and GlaxoSmithKline, the makers of Avandia. According to the study, approximately 28,000 diabetic patients who consumed Avandia or Actos (approximately 50.3 percent of this study group consumed Avandia and the other 49.7 percent consumed Actos) from 2000 to 2005. After studying the results of the five-year study, researchers determined that of the 1,869 patients that died, there was a 15 percent higher rate of death among those consuming Avandia compared to Actos.

What is Avandia?

Avandia, also known as rosiglitazone maleate, is a type 2 diabetes medication that is part of a fairly new class of diabetic drugs. Instead of providing a diabetic patient with insulin or the ability to make more insulin in order to regulate blood sugar levels, Avandia works by building on the body’s natural insulin levels to improve and regulate a diabetic’s blood glucose. According to manufacturers, patients who are taking Avandia actually should not even consume insulin or nitrates for their condition.

Avandia has been investigated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for side effects including heart disease and heart failure as well as early-onset osteoporosis, but the drug has an additional list of side effects, according to the results of short-term clinical trials of Avandia, including the following:

* upper respiratory tract infection

* headache

* injury

* back pain

* hyperglycemia

* fatigue

* sinusitis

* diarrhea

* hypoglycemia

Living With Avandia Risks

Patients who have suffered from the potential Avandia side effects are advised to seek medical attention immediately to discuss alternate medications that may assist in regulating glucose levels without the severity of the Avandia side effects.

Additionally, it may be necessary to contact an experienced pharmaceutical law firm that can provide essential details into the development of a potential Avandia class action lawsuit. Such litigation may provide an Avandia victim with monetary compensation for the potential damages a patient may have incurred while a patient consumed the drug.

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