what they said (Hover the mouse cursor over underlined words for more info)
A class of drugs commonly used to treat diabetes doubles the risk of heart failure, according to a new study.
The findings, published in today's edition of the journal Diabetes Care, are sure to increase the scrutiny given to thiazolinediones, or TZDs, which are among the world's bestselling drugs.
Earlier this year, research showed that TZD sold under the brand name Avandia sharply increased the risk of heart attack and death from cardiovascular causes. The drug's manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline, has rejected that research by presenting data showing Avandia is no more dangerous than other oral diabetes drugs....
The original article can be found at: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070727.wldiabetes27/BNStory/specialScienceandHealth/home
what we said (Hover the mouse cursor over underlined words for more info)
The study that this article is reporting on only looked at one particular drug and was not a comparison of the harms of two or more products. Therefore, any mention of the harms of this particular product relative to other oral hypoglycemics would not be relevant.
Overall this is a good summary of recent findings regarding the safety of the most popular (and expensive) oral drugs for diabetes. It should serve as a reminder that newer is not necessarily better.