Insulin Sensitizer Protects Against Heart Attacks

A large clinical study found that the diabetes drug pioglitazonereduced the combined risk of heart attacks,strokes, and death, in addition to lowering blood sugar levels.The study compared the drug against conventional therapyin 5200 high-risk patients with type 2 diabetes andfound that the drug made the body's cells more sensitive toinsulin. Pioglitazone belongs to a class of drugs known asinsulin sensitizers, which include Actos, manufactured byTakeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd, and GlaxoSmithKline'sAvandia. The results of this study indicate that 10 to 11heart attacks, strokes, or deaths could be prevented for every500 high-risk patients who are treated with pioglitazoneover a 3-year period.

Ms. Farley is a freelance medical writer based in Wakefield, RI.