Diabetes Drugs Increase Risk of Heart Failure, Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center Research Shows

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – A class of drugs commonly used to treat type 2 diabetes may double the risk of heart failure, according to a new analysis by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine and colleagues. Based on a review of research studies and case reports involving more than 78,000 patients, the authors concluded that the risk of heart failure may be up to 100 percent higher (depending on the type of study) in patients taking thiazolinediones (which includes Avandia® and Actos®). These drugs are known to enhance insulin sensitivity. The authors estimated that one additional patient with type 2 diabetes would develop heart failure for every 50 patients taking the drugs over a 26-month period.