A recent study by a Harvard researcher reveals patients who take the diabetes drug Avandia more than double their risk of a heart attack, according to tradingmarkets.com. The study is set to be published in the American Diabetes Association journal.
This isn’t the first time Avandia has been cited as a potentially dangerous drug. Three years ago, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) required a “Black Box” warning be added to the label of all Avandia bottles about the heart risks associated with medication. Though, surprisingly, the FDA allowed Avandia to stay on the market despite many Endocrinologists and other diabetes specialists calling for the removal of Avandia from the market, just like Vioxx and Rezulin.
In addition to potential heart attack, the most common Avandia side effects include:
- Liver toxicity
- Severe chest pains
- Congestive heart failure
- Stroke
- Vision changes
- Trouble breathing
- Head ache
- Back ache
- Anemia
- Respiratory infections
- Brittle bones in women
Nearly 13,000 people who used to take Avandia and suffered heart attacks or other serious side effects have filed claims against the drug company GlaxoSmithKline, the manufacturer of Avandia. That’s far too many people who’ve suffered negative side effects from a drug that was marketed as something to help people with diabetes. In fact, my colleague, Emily Brannon, wrote an article about how the side effects from Avandia basically mirror the side effects of having diabetes.
Here’s a video discussing the possible Avandia side effects and the need the strengthen the warning labels on the Avandia bottles…
All of these studies point to fact that Avandia is potentially a very dangerous drug and the FDA should strongly consider removing it from the open market.