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Article Summary: Millions of Americans take popular drugs to lose weight, but the long-term risks and benefits of these medications aren't known, two Canadian researchers contend.
Study Raises Questions About Weight-Loss Drugs
Millions of Americans take popular drugs to lose weight, but the long-term risks and benefits of these medications aren't known, two Canadian researchers contend.
Drs. Raj Padwal and Sumit Majumdar, of the University of Alberta, said long-term studies are needed to determine whether losing weight on drugs such as sibutramine (Meridia), orlistat (Xenical) and rimonabant (Acomplia) actually reduces the risks of heart attack, stroke and diabetes associated with being overweight or obese.
The physicians expressed their views in the Jan. 6 issue of The Lancet.
"These three medications will likely lower weight, modestly, but we need better studies," Padwal said. "The studies that are out there don't provide information on cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular deaths. The other problem is that they are not long-term and have high dropout rates. We really need to know what the net benefits of these medications are, and truly know whether we should be using them or not."
Padwal and Majumdar reviewed all the published studies on the risks and benefits of the drugs.
For example, Meridia is associated with improvement in some cardiovascular risk factors, but for some patients it raises blood pressure, Padwal said. Read more at healthfinder.gov
If you or anyone you know has taken Meridia and has experienced any negative symptoms or side-effects, please contact our expert lawyers and obtain a case evaluation at no cost to you..
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