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Prescription Meds Can Put on Unwanted Pounds
Posted 2 Mar 2012 by Drugs.com
FRIDAY, March 2 – Medications taken by millions of Americans for mood disorders, high blood pressure, diabetes and other chronic conditions can have an unhealthy side effect: weight gain. While other choices exist for some types of drugs, adjusting medications is not simply a matter of switching, said Ryan Roux, chief pharmacy officer with the Harris County Hospital District, in Houston. In the late 1990s, Dr. Lawrence Cheskin conducted early research on prescription medicines and obesity. "Some medicines make an early, noticeable difference, causing patients to become ravenously hungry, while changes are subtle for others. A few months taking them and you've gained 10 pounds," said Cheskin, now director of the Johns Hopkins Weight Management Center, in Baltimore. To help increase awareness, Roux and his pharmacist group have compiled a list of "weight-promoting" and "weight-neutral or ... Read more
Related support groups: Bipolar Disorder, High Blood Pressure, Zoloft, Diabetes, Type 2, Wellbutrin, Seroquel, Prednisone, Prozac, Hypertension, Metformin, Paxil, Gabapentin, Lamictal, Sprintec, Mirena
Four Common Meds Send Thousands of Seniors to Hospital: CDC
Posted 23 Nov 2011 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, Nov. 23 – An estimated 100,000 older Americans are hospitalized for adverse drug reactions yearly, and most of those emergencies stem from four common medications, a new study finds. The four types of medication – two for diabetes and two blood-thinning agents – account for two-thirds of those drug-related emergency hospitalizations. "Of the thousands of medications available to older patients, a small group of blood thinners and diabetes medications caused a high proportion of emergency hospitalizations for adverse drug events among elderly Americans," said lead study author Dr. Daniel Budnitz, director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's medication safety program. Medications previously designated "high-risk" were implicated in only 1.2 percent of hospitalizations, the study found. Working with a nationally representative database, CDC researchers ... Read more
Related support groups: Metformin, Aspirin, Coumadin, Plavix, Warfarin, Insulin, Lantus, Januvia, Glucophage, Actos, Glyburide, Humalog, Glipizide, Janumet, Novolog
Diabetes Drug Actos May Raise Risk for Bladder Cancer: FDA
Posted 16 Jun 2011 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, June 16 – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is warning consumers that the popular diabetes drug Actos (pioglitazone) may increase the risk of bladder cancer when used for more than a year. The agency's warning comes five days after Germany and France pulled Actos from the market, citing similar concerns. Actos is in a class of drugs called thiazolidinediones, the only other member of which, Avandia (rosiglitazone), was taken off U.S. pharmacy shelves in May because it was linked to an increased risk of heart attacks. The new cancer warning will appear on the labeling, the FDA said. However, although Actos does have some side effects, "the beneficial effects of Actos, I think, outweigh any possible risk of cancer," said Dr. Joseph Giangola, medical director of diabetes at Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, N.J. Actos is used to control blood sugar and is ... Read more
Related support groups: Actos, Pioglitazone, ActoPlus Met, Metformin/Pioglitazone, Glimepiride/Pioglitazone, ActosPlus Met, Duetact
FDA Medwatch Alert: Actos (pioglitazone): Ongoing Safety Review - Potential Increased Risk of Bladder Cancer
Posted 15 Jun 2011 by Drugs.com
[UPDATED 06/15/2011] Use of the diabetes medication Actos (pioglitazone) for more than one year may be associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer. Information about this risk will be added to the Warnings and Precautions section of the label for pioglitazone-containing medicines. The patient Medication Guide for these medicines will also be revised to include information on the risk of bladder cancer. This safety information is based on FDA's review of data from a five-year interim analysis of an ongoing, ten-year epidemiological study. The five-year results showed that although there was no overall increased risk of bladder cancer with pioglitazone use, an increased risk of bladder cancer was noted among patients with the longest exposure to pioglitazone, and in those exposed to the highest cumulative dose of pioglitazone. FDA is also aware of a recent epidemiological study ... Read more
Related support groups: Actos, Pioglitazone, ActoPlus Met, Metformin/Pioglitazone, Glimepiride/Pioglitazone, ActosPlus Met, Duetact
Actos Cut Risk of Prediabetes Becoming Diabetes in Study
Posted 24 Mar 2011 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, March 23 – Researchers report that taking the diabetes drug Actos helped people who had prediabetes avoid getting type 2 diabetes. "Pioglitazone [Actos] was extremely effective in preventing diabetes," said study author Dr. Ralph DeFronzo, deputy director of the Texas Diabetes Institute and chief of the diabetes division at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio. The actual reduction in risk was 72 percent. "The reason that people go from prediabetes to diabetes is that the insulin-producing beta cells fail. By the time someone is diagnosed with prediabetes, they may have lost 70 percent to 80 percent of beta cell function. Pioglitazone improves how the body responds to insulin and protects the beta cells from failing," he explained. The study, which was funded by the drug's manufacturer, Takeda Pharmaceuticals, is published in the March 24 issue of the ... Read more
Related support groups: Actos, Pre-Diabetes, Pioglitazone
Diabetes Drugs Might Lower Risk of Lung Cancer
Posted 3 Nov 2010 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Nov. 2 – Researchers report that drugs used to treat diabetes may indeed both prevent and contain lung cancer. The findings, being presented Tuesday at the annual meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians in Vancouver, back up preliminary data that some diabetes medications might protect against tobacco-induced lung cancer. "Patients who did not develop lung cancer had a much higher chance of taking one of these medications than those who did develop lung cancer," said study author Dr. Peter Mazzone. "And those who did develop lung cancer were much less likely to have seen that cancer spread outside the chest and more likely to survive longer with one of these drugs." Both metformin and the class of drugs known as thiazolidinediones (which includes Avandia and Actos) are used by tens of millions of Americans. A mouse study published in September found that metformin ... Read more
Related support groups: Metformin, Glucophage, Actos, Janumet, Lung Cancer, Avandia, Pioglitazone, Glucophage XR, ActoPlus Met, Avandamet, Glumetza, Metformin/Pioglitazone, Riomet, Glucovance, Glipizide/Metformin
US Agency Probes Risks Of Bladder Cancer With Diabetes Pill Actos, Rival To Glaxo's Avandia
Posted 20 Sep 2010 by Drugs.com
From Canadian Press DataFile (September 17, 2010) WASHINGTON – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is reviewing data suggesting a possible link between the diabetes medication Actos and bladder cancer. The agency says five-year results from a study show patients taking Actos the longest had higher risk of bladder cancer. The drug’s manufacturer Japan’s Takeda Pharmaceuticals is conducting the study, which is scheduled to run 10 years. ``The agency has not concluded that Actos increases the risk of bladder cancer,’’ the agency said in a statement. Sales of Actos have surged in recent years because it is seen as a safer alternative to GlaxoSmithKline’s diabetes drug Avandia. The FDA is considering whether to withdraw Avandia because of potential heart risks. The drugs work similarly to control blood sugar. Read more
Related support groups: Actos
FDA Drug Safety Communication: Ongoing Safety Review of Actos (pioglitazone) and Potential Increased Risk of Bladder Cancer After Two Years Exposure
Posted 20 Sep 2010 by Drugs.com
Safety Announcement Additional Information for Patients Additional Information for Healthcare Professionals Data Summary References Safety Announcement [09-17-2010] The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is reviewing data from an ongoing, ten-year epidemiological study designed to evaluate whether Actos (pioglitazone), is associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer. Findings from studies in animals and humans suggest this is a potential safety risk that needs further study. Actos is used along with diet and exercise to control blood sugar or improve control of blood sugar in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Bladder cancer is estimated to occur in 20 per 100,000 persons per year in the United States and is thought to be higher in diabetics.1 The drug manufacturer, Takeda, has conducted a planned analysis of the study data at the five-year mark, and submitted their r ... Read more
Related support groups: Actos, Pioglitazone, ActoPlus Met, Metformin/Pioglitazone, Glimepiride/Pioglitazone, ActosPlus Met, Duetact
Heart Risks the Same With 2 Diabetes Drugs: Study
Posted 25 Aug 2010 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Aug. 24 – A new study finds that the risk of heart attacks or death after taking the glucose-lowering diabetes drugs Avandia and Actos are about the same. This is a direct contradiction to numerous other studies that found that the risk was elevated for Avandia (rosiglitazone) but not for Actos (pioglitazone). The findings are, however, in line with some other previous studies, further muddying the picture for patients and doctors trying to select the best drug with the least side effects. "The rosiglitazone story gets more and more interesting and confusing. It seems every time we have a study that indicates a problem with the drug, another one finds no trouble with it," said Dr. Kirk Garratt, clinical director of interventional cardiovascular research at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. In July, members of a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel recommended ... Read more
Related support groups: Actos, Avandia, Pioglitazone, Rosiglitazone
New Data Supports Link Between Diabetes Drugs, Fractures
Posted 29 Jul 2010 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, July 29 – New research finds that two widely prescribed diabetes drugs may raise the risk of broken bones in postmenopausal women with type 2 diabetes. There was also a fracture risk seen among men who had been prescribed either Avandia or Actos plus a loop diuretic. This isn't the first time such an association has been seen, raising doubts as to whether these drugs, which belong to the class of medications known as thiazolidinediones (TZDs), should be the first choice for treating type 2 diabetes. "This raises the question of whether this class of drugs is best for patients. There are a lot of other great drugs you can use in diabetes, the best of which is to give patients insulin, which has no real side effects and has been used for 80 years," observed Steve Hammes, chief of endocrinology at the University of Rochester Medical Center. "It's more and more clear that, as a ... Read more
Related support groups: Actos, Avandia, Pioglitazone, Rosiglitazone, Troglitazone, Rezulin
Type 2 Diabetes Drug May Increase Fracture Risk
Posted 16 Jul 2010 by Drugs.com
MONDAY, Sept. 28 – Patients who take the diabetes drugs known as thiazolidinediones may be at higher risk of bone fracture, new research suggests. In the study, Dr. Ian Douglas of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and colleagues searched a database of more than 6 million patients in the United Kingdom and found 1,819 people aged 40 and older who had had a bone fracture and had been prescribed a type of thiazolidinedione. The drugs were introduced in the 1990s and are used to treat type 2 diabetes. After adjusting their figures to account for the fact that older people are more likely to break bones, the researchers found that those taking thiazolidinediones had almost 1.5 times as many fractures while taking the drugs as they did when they weren't taking the drugs. The risk grew the longer the people took the medications. The findings support previous research that has ... Read more
Related support groups: Diabetes, Type 2, Actos, Avandia, Pioglitazone, Troglitazone, Rosiglitazone, Rezulin
Diabetics Urged to Confer With Their Doctor About Avandia Use
Posted 15 Jul 2010 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, July 15 – One day after a U.S. advisory panel recommended that the controversial diabetes drug Avandia stay on the market – albeit with added restrictions – several medical organizations are urging patients not to change their medications before consulting a health-care professional. Some experts expect the use of Avandia to drop off markedly, however. "Why give a drug with restrictions when a similar drug which has studies that did not show the bad outcomes of Avandia could be used instead," said Dr. Jacob Warman, chief of endocrinology at The Brooklyn Hospital Center in New York City. "I don't see anybody willing to take Avandia when they could take Actos." Actos (pioglitazone) is a drug similar to Avandia, one of the same class of medications known as thiazolidinediones (TZDs). On Wednesday, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel voted that the blood ... Read more
Related support groups: Actos, Avandia, Pioglitazone, Rosiglitazone, Troglitazone, Rezulin
Diabetes Drugs Avandia, Actos Tied to Fractures in Women
Posted 15 Feb 2010 by Drugs.com
MONDAY, Feb. 15 – Women who take diabetes drugs known as thiazolidinediones, which include Avandia and Actos, are at a greater risk of bone fractures, a new study finds. Women who took a thiazolidinedione drug for a year were 50 percent more likely to suffer a bone fracture than patients who didn't take the drug, the researchers found. Women older than 65 were most vulnerable, with a 70 percent higher risk. "Older women are already at a higher risk of osteoporosis and osteoporosis-related fractures, which might explain why they appeared to be the most affected," study senior author Dr. L. Keoki Williams, of the Center for Health Services Research at Henry Ford Hospital, said in a news release. Thiazolidinedione drugs – which include pioglitazone (Actos) and rosiglitazone (Avandia) – help people with type 2 diabetes better control their blood sugar levels. The drugs work by lowering ... Read more
Related support groups: Actos, Avandia, Pioglitazone, Rosiglitazone, Troglitazone, Rezulin
Avandia Raises Heart Failure Risk More Than Actos
Posted 12 Jan 2010 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Aug. 18 – The type 2 diabetes drug Avandia (rosiglitazone) increases the risk of heart failure and death more than another drug in the same class, Actos (pioglitazone), new Canadian research contends. Avandia has been the subject of controversy since 2007, when it was linked to an increased risk for heart attack and death, although those claims have become clouded as other studies have discounted that risk to some degree. But taken together, many believe that the drug should not be used, especially since there appears to be a safer choice. "It is difficult for making a case for using rosiglitazone in anybody, because we have an alternative," said lead researcher Dr. David Juurlink, division head of clinical pharmacology and toxicology at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. In 2007, Dr. Steven Nissen, chairman of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine at the ... Read more
Related support groups: Diabetes, Type 2, Actos, Avandia
Diabetes Drugs Go Head-to-Head in Study
Posted 4 Dec 2009 by Drugs.com
THURSDAY, Dec. 3 – A class of drugs still taken by millions of people with type 2 diabetes is associated with a higher risk of dying and heart failure than the newer treatment metformin, researchers say. Sulfonylureas, long a mainstay of diabetes treatment, performed less well than metformin in a study of oral anti-diabetes drugs, but doctors said the findings aren't necessarily a reason to discontinue taking them. Glyburide, glipizide and glimepiride are examples of sulfonylureas. Metformin, which is sold as Glucophage and other brand names, is already the first-choice therapy for type 2 diabetes, and the findings are in line with new American Diabetes Association recommendations, meaning the results won't change the way patients are already treated. "This raises some interesting points for other, more specific research, but it won't affect the way we practice medicine tomorrow," said ... Read more
Related support groups: Diabetes, Type 2, Metformin, Glucophage, Actos, Glyburide, Glipizide, Janumet, Amaryl, Avandia, Glimepiride, Pioglitazone, Glucophage XR, GlipiZIDE XL, Glucotrol, ActoPlus Met