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Diabetes Drug Reduces Artery Re-Clogging
Diabetes Drug Reduces Artery Re-Clogging -- Posted by Gumbo on 10-30-04 06:38
Diabetes Drug Reduces Artery Re-Clogging
ALEXANDRIA, Va., Oct 25, 2004 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Rosiglitazone, a
drug taken to help improve blood sugar levels, also helps boost the
effectiveness of a treatment for opening clogged arteries, according to a
study in the November issue of Diabetes Care.
People who have diabetes are far more likely to die from coronary artery
disease than people who don't have diabetes. In fact, it is the leading
cause of death for people with type 2 diabetes. Contributing to this problem
is the fact that treatments that are effective for people who don't have
diabetes often are not as effective for those who do.
One such treatment is percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), a group of
procedures (such as balloon angioplasty) for opening narrowed arteries.
Stents, which are used to prop open blocked coronary vessels, have proved to
be an important complement to PCI. But in people with diabetes, major
arteries often become reclogged after PCI, despite the use of stents. This
problem is called restenosis, which can be treated with a second PCI
procedure.
The rate of restenosis following PCI for people who don't have diabetes is
20-40 percent after six months. For people who do have diabetes, it is 32-66
percent.
But now researchers in Korea, under a grant provided by the Basic Research
Program of the Korea Science & Engineering Foundation, have found that
people with diabetes who take the drug rosiglitazone following coronary
stent implantation are substantially less likely to require a second PCI
procedure due to restenosis. The drug, which sells under the brand name
Avandia, reduced restenosis rates by 54 percent in people who have type 2
diabetes. Those who experienced the reduced restenosis rates took 8 mg of
the drug prior to catheterization and 4 mg daily thereafter. Researchers
believe the reduced restenosis rate may occur partly because the drug lowers
inflammation, which can lead to clogging of the arteries.
Rosiglitazone is commonly prescribed for people who have diabetes as a once-
or twice-daily medication that helps the body more effectively use its own
natural insulin to control blood sugar levels. It is part of a class of
drugs known as thiazolidinediones (TZDs). A separate study, published last
year in the American Heart Journal, found that another TZD, pioglitazone,
may also aid in reducing restenosis.
Diabetes Care, published by the American Diabetes Association, is the
leading peer-reviewed journal of clinical research into the nation's fifth
leading cause of death by disease. Diabetes also is a leading cause of heart
disease and stroke, as well as the leading cause of adult blindness, kidney
failure and non-traumatic amputations. For more information about diabetes,
visit the American Diabetes Association Web site www.diabetes.org or call 1-
800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383).
SOURCE American Diabetes Association
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