Stricter Rules for Diabetes Medications

Scott Kappes

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A panel of outside medical experts met last week to discuss the need for new diabetes medications to undergo more extensive testing to prove that they do not increase the likelihood of cardiovascular problems. The panel voted overwhelmingly, 14-2, to require the new regulations for diabetes medications. Over the past year the diabetes medications Avandia and Actos have been at the center of the controversy after studies linked the drugs to an increased risk of heart attack and stroke among other heart conditions.

The panel recommended the FDA instruct drug manufacturers to conduct long-term studies in order to rule out cardiovascular risks in the diabetes drugs. Most panel members also suggested that companies start the studies before the drug is approved and complete them after approval.

The FDA is not required to follow the advice of advisory panels but usually does.

Recent studies have shown that the diabetes epidemic is not going away anytime soon. Over the past two years we have seen a 17 percent increase in the number of people with diabetes, bringing the number up to 24 million in the US alone. With more people taking diabetes medications than ever before, the safety of these medications should be of the utmost concern to the FDA.