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alfreda89 ([personal profile] alfreda89) wrote2005-10-20 10:01 am
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From AP: New Diabetes pill is dangerous?

A new diabetes pill that appears headed for federal approval can double the risk for deaths, heart attacks and strokes, according to a study released online Thursday because of public safety concerns.

The drug muraglitazar, under development by Bristol-Myers Squibb and Merck & Co. under the brand name Pargluva, was endorsed by a Food and Drug Administration panel last month. It is a treatment for Type 2 diabetes, which accounts for about 90 percent of diabetics.

But Cleveland Clinic researchers who analyzed data the FDA made public before the panel vote found that patients taking Pargluva faced double the risk of death, heart attack or stroke, compared with those on dummy pills or a similar drug.

The study was published Thursday morning on the Journal of the American Medical Association's Web site.

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On the Net:

http://jama.ama-assn.org/