Researchers from the New England Journal of Medicine are reporting that data on Avandia’s overall heart risks are “inconclusive.” Researchers say that they have not yet established if there is an association between Avandia and heart attacks or Avandia and heart disease in general. The Food and Drug Administration says that Avadia and another diabetes drug, Actos, will be required to carry a “black box” warning about the heightened heart attack risk from taking the drug.
Avandia Heart Risks May Be “Inconclusive”

(more…)

GlaxoSmithKline Plc’s diabetes drug Avandia may soon have a warning label to consumers advising that the drug causes an increased risk of bone fractures. A recent study shows that Avandia leads to an increased risk of broken bones in women. The effect has not yet been studied in men.
Glaxo’s Avandia May Get Bone Warning, Analyst Says

(more…)

The recent safety concerns over Vioxx, Ketek, and Avandia are highlighting the longstanding debate on how prescription medications should be approved for use by American consumers. The safety of the three drugs was called into question after the Food and Drug Administration approved them for use. Vioxx has been implicated in thousands of heart attacks, Ketek causes liver failure, and the health hazards of Avandia have only just begun to be realized.
Congress Seeks to Balance Drug Safety, Quick Approval

(more…)

Recent data from more than 15,000 patients with type 2 diabetes show that initial therapy with Avandia was associated with significantly lower medical costs and total visits to the doctor compared to patients who were treated with a sulfonylurea. Dr. Mel Sheng Duh, the co-author of the study, said, “the study findings demonstrate that treatment with Avandia resulted in significantly lower total medical costs for the patient over time, when compared to sulfonylurea therapy. These data are important to physicians selecting treatment for their patients because the financial burden of diabetes and its associated health problems is staggering — not only to patients but to their families and the healthcare system as well.”
New Data Show Patients Treated With Avandia(R) (Rosiglitazone Maleate) Incurred Lower Medical Costs and Used Fewer Healthcare Resources When Compared to Patients Treated With Sulphonylureas

(more…)

Larry Alan Stanford’s widow and son are suing GlaxoSmithKline, the maker of the diabetes drug Avandia. Peggie Stanford, Larry’s widow, says that her husband died as a result of having taken the drug. Larry Stanford died on May 21 from a heart attack. Stanford had been taking Avandamet, a form of Avandia, combined with another diabetes drug, since early 2005.
Avandia Maker Sued Over Heart Attack

(more…)

The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor, PPAR-gamma agonist, class of drugs is the fastest-growing class of drugs in the type 2 diabetes market. Currently, GlaxoSmithKline’s Avandia and Takeda’s Actos are the fastest-growing class of drugs in the type 2 diabetes market.
Understand How Recent Safety Concerns Will Affect PPAR-Gamma Agonists

(more…)

Actos, a diabetes drug made by Takeda Pharmaceutical, appears to actually lower the risk of heart attack and death by 44 percent in diabetic patients with kidney disease. The findings were made based on the data collected from a group of patients enrolled in a previous study. In a different study, Actos reduced inflammation and blood clots more than a placebo. Takeda’s drug is in the same family as Avandia, the drug recently shown to increase heart attack risk. The data from Actos suggests that the problems with Avandia aren’t linked to other drugs in the same family.
Takeda Drug, Similar to Avandia, Cuts Heart Risk

(more…)

Diabetes experts and doctors debated the safety of diabetes drug Avandia at the American Diabetes Association’s annual meeting in Chicago. GlaxoSmithKline’s drug Avandia has been the center of controversy ever since an analysis published last month in the New England Journal of Medicine showed that taking Avandia led to a 43 percent increase in heart attack risk and a 64 percent risk in the rise of heart death.
Glaxo’s Avandia Stirs Debate at Diabetes Meeting

(more…)

Avandia patients in Canada are being advised to speak to their doctors after a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine established a link between the risk of heart-related problems and Avandia. Prior to the study, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration added a black box warning about heart-related problems to Avandia; this is the most severe warning possible.
Warning to Avandia Patients in Canada

(more…)

Larry Alan Stanford died on May 21, the same day that the report implicating Avandia for increasing heart attack risk in those who took it was published. Stanford’s family is suing Glaxo, alleging that the company knew the risks of the drug, yet continued to sell it anyway.
GlaxoSmithkline Sued in Death of Man Who Took Avandia

(more…)