Consumer Group Wants Ban on Avandia

Public Citizen, a consumer group, wants the diabetes drug Avandia banned from the market. The group recently petitioned the FDA for the ban on the basis that Avandia is dangerous. Avandia is sold by GlaxoSmithKline and is used to treat Type II diabetes. A working group including representatives of the American Diabetes Association and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes made a unanimous advisory against using Avandia due to their concerns about risks of the drug. Every day about 10,000 prescriptions for Avandia are filled, despite publication of a study linking Avandia to an increased heart attack risk. An FDA safety alert was issued for Avandia in May 2007. In addition to the increased heart attack risk, Public Citizen also asserts that Avandia is linked to liver toxicity, as well as increased risks of heart failure, bone fractures, anemia and macular edema.

The scientific consensus against Avandia is overwhelming," said Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen’s Health Research Group. "The timing of these findings should give the FDA the momentum it needs to act swiftly to prevent further needless deaths and health damage by banning this drug.

If you, or someone you know, has been injured by using Avandia, contact the lawyers at Sheller, P.C. Sheller lawyers have years of experience successfully representing people injured by dangerous and defective drugs.