Prof. Peter Gotzsche, MD notes that the RECORD trial of the diabetes drug rosiglitazone (Avandia) was terribly manipulated by GlaxoSmithKline.

An article published in the New York Times on July 9, 2010 titled, “Caustic Government Report Deals Blow to Diabetes Drug” revealed that Dr. Thomas Marciniak, a reviewer at the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), found a dozen instances in which patients taking Rosiglitazone (Avandia) suffered serious heart problems that were not counted in the study’s tally of adverse events.

The article also notes that “It [ Rosiglitazone (Avandia) ] has been shown to increase the risks of bone fractures and to cause swelling that can lead to heart failure and eye problems.”

The article also notes that “Dr. Jerome P. Kassirer, a former editor of The New England Journal, said the Record trial raised the question “whether the entire system is corrupt.””

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The diabetes drug Avandia (Rosiglitazone Maleate) increases the risk of heart attack by 43% according to a study by Steven Nissen, MD, Chairman of the Department of Cardiovascular Medicine of the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

In an interview on CNBC's Squawk Box on Feb 22, 2010, Dr. Nissen noted that Glaxo, the maker of Avandia, stole a copy of his manuscript -- or as Mike Huckman of CNBC stated, they were given a copy of the manuscript by one of the peer reviewers for the New England Journal of Medicine, who later claimed he wasn't feeling well, and didn't know what he was doing.

Dr. Nissen said that after determining that the study was scientifically correct, Glaxo then planned a Public Relations campaign to discredit it. Read the entire article | Email this article

Actos (pioglitazone), an antidiabetic medicine, causes significant weight gain in 48 percent of patients who take it according to a study from Australia. Avandia (rosiglitazone), another antidiabetic medicine, causes significant weight loss in 58 percent of patients. Read the entire article | Email this article