Diabetes drugs 'can double risk of heart failure'
By Rebecca Smith, Medical Editor
Half a million diabetics could be at double the risk of heart failure because of the drugs they are taking.
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A question mark has been raised over the safety of Avandia and Actos, which are used to treat type 2 diabetes, by a study. Researchers say they could be responsible for an additional 5,000 cases of heart failure each year.
One in every 50 patients taking the medication over a 26-month period would suffer heart failure and need admission to hospital, says the research by experts at the University of East Anglia and in America.
According to GlaxoSmithKline, 250,000 people are on its drug Avandia (rosiglitazone) in Britain and the same number on Actos (pioglitazone), which is made by Takeda. Both have been recommended by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice).
Dr Yoon Loke, the author of the analysis, which looked at more than 200 cases of heart failure while on the drugs, said the risk was small, but when the fact that 500,000 people use them is taken into account, there could be an additional 5,000 cases of heart failure per year.
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