Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Today's Globe: diabetes drug and heart risks, pitching health insurance, stent rivals

Avandia, the world's top-selling oral diabetes drug, significantly increases the risk of heart attacks, a prominent cardiologist said in an article that the New England Journal of Medicine deemed important enough to post on its website yesterday, weeks before the scheduled print publication date. Patients taking Avandia should not abruptly stop the drug, the FDA said. Instead, they should meet with their doctors to discuss their risk of a heart attack and how well their diabetes is controlled, according to Dr. Larry C. Deeb, president of medicine and science for the American Diabetes Association.

Jon Kingsdale, executive director of the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector Authority, which is overseeing implementation of the state's healthcare revamp, will gather with state political leaders and Red Sox executives today at Fenway Park to unveil a $3 million advertising campaign (above) that is heavily tied to the Red Sox and will be featured on the team's cable television outlet, New England Sports Network.

Medtronic Inc. will report today that its stent for preventing heart attacks didn't cause blood clots in tests, increasing the company's chances of expanding its share of the $5.4 billion-a-year worldwide market. The results, to be presented at a scientific meeting in Barcelona, suggest that experimental devices may be safer than those sold by Johnson & Johnson and Boston Scientific Corp.

Posted by Elizabeth Cooney at 06:28 AM

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