Thursday, November 18, 2004

AVANDIA MAY REDUCE RESTENOSIS RATE IN PATIENTS WITH DIABETES FOLLOWING CORONARY STENT IMPLANTATION, NEW FINDINGS DEMONSTRATE

Patients with type 2 diabetes undergoing coronary stent implantation may be protected against restenosis when treated by GlaxoSmithKline Plc's pharmaceutical brand Avandia (rosiglitazone maleate), new research suggests.

In the prospective trial, 95 patients with type 2 diabetes who had recent acute myocardial infarction and underwent coronary stent implantation were randomized to a treatment group that received Avandia (n=47) or a control group (n=48) that received only conventional antidiabetic therapy. Clinical follow-up was performed at one, three and six months, and follow-up angiography was performed at six months.

The rate of restenosis was 17.6 percent in the Avandia group compared with 38.2 percent in the control group. Furthermore, Avandia treatment was related to a significant reduction in the diameter stenosis after six months compared with the control group. More control patients (n=9) underwent target lesion revascularization versus Avandia-treated patients (n=4), although this difference was not statistically significant.

Results also indicated a reduction in fasting insulin concentration and the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein concentration as a result of six-month Avandia therapy. However, the baseline and follow-up glucose and lipid concentrations did not differ between the groups.

The researchers noted that the effect of Avandia is partly due to its anti-inflammatory properties.

"This effect of rosiglitazone for preventing in-stent restenosis . . . may present an important modality for inhibiting any undiscovered and diffuse atherosclerotic processes observed in diabetic patients," they concluded.

The study was published in the November issue of Diabetes Care.

Thursday, September 2, 2004

IN BRIEF: GLAXOSMITHKLINE PLC

GlaxoSmithKline Plc has posted clinical trial summaries of its type 2 diabetes drug Avandia (rosiglitazone maleate) to its online Clinical Trial Register at http://ctr.gsk.co.uk. As data about Avandia and other GSK drugs are summarized and put into the Register format, the information will be posted to the Web site, GSK said. The Register will contain summary results of GSK-sponsored trials that involve drugs marketed by GSK as well as references to related publications.