AVANDIA - Heart Risk in Drug for Diabetes

In May 2007, the New England Journal of Medicine published a report suggesting that the widely-prescribed diabetes drug Avandia may significantly increase the risk of heart attack and heart-related death--especially in those who have a prior history of heart disease or who are considered at risk for a heart attack. Immediately following the report, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a safety alert encouraging patients taking Avandia to consult with their doctor about possible treatment alternatives.

Individuals who have taken Avandia and suffered a heart attack or other serious health effect may be able to hold the drug's maker--GlaxoSmithKline--responsible for damages, such as medical costs and mental anguish, among other things. For a FREE case evaluation with an attorney who can determine your eligiblity to seek damages, contact the Law Offices of Arnold Laub today.

What You Should Know About Avandia
Avandia (rosiglitazone maleate) is an FDA approved drug used in the treatment of Type 2 diabetes, a serious condition affecting approximately 20 million Americans. Since its approval in 1992, the drug has been prescribed to as many as 10 million Americans.

Over the years, Avandia has been linked to various side effects including:

Congestive heart failure, edema, and fluid retention
Liver toxicity - symptoms include vomiting, nausea, jaundice and dark urine;
Low blood pressure

The findings published by the NEJM, however, are raising new concerns about the extent of the heart risks associated with Avandia. The analysis based on a review of more than 40 existing clinical studies involving more than 28,000 patients, researchers found that those taking Avandia were between 30 to 40 percent more likely to suffer heart attack and heart-related death than those taking a placebo or other diabetes drug. As of May 2007, the FDA said data analyses were ongoing to confirm the risks.

Know Your Legal Rights
GlaxoSmithKline, a british company that makes Avandia, disclosed that they had known about the signs of potential cardiovascular risk since August 2006, when the company submitted a similar analysis to the FDA. Glaxo has made billions of dollars from sales of Avandia, the most popular diabetes drug in the world.

The government's own preliminary evaluation of Avandia confirms the heart risks reported in a study earlier this week and suggests that as many as 60,000 to 100,000 heart attacks might be linked to its use since it came on the market eight years ago, according to a leading member of Congress.

In a floor statement placed in the Senate record, on May 24, 2007, Sen. Charles Grassley also said that safety watchdogs within the federal Food and Drug Administration "several months ago" recommended a "black box" on the drug's label _ the strongest possible warning.

It is the first confirmation that the FDA's own analysis of Avandia shows a similar magnitude of heart attack risks - dangers that were first publicly raised in the NEJM report in May.

If you or someone you love has taken Avandia and suffered a heart attack or heart-related death, make sure your legal rights are protected by contacting an attorney experienced in pharmaceutical litigation. You may be entitled to compensation for your losses and suffering.

You can call our law firm at 1-800-338-5282, or go to our Contact Us page and fill in the simple form. We will respond shortly after we receive the email.