Fags In The News - AIDS Drug Doubles Heart Risk

http://www.newsmax.com/health/AIDS_Drug_Heart_Risk/2008/04/02/84835.html

AIDS Drug Doubles Heart Risk

Wednesday, April 2, 2008

A commonly used AIDS drug appears to nearly double the risk of a heart

attack, researchers said Tuesday. In a study published online by the medical

journal Lancet, the researchers also said another less frequently used AIDS

drug increased the chances of a heart attack by 50 percent. Experts said

doctors should be aware of the increased risks, but they did not recommend

that patients abandon the two drugs, Ziagen and Videx.

AIDS drugs "are wonderful and lifesaving, but they do have toxicity

problems," said Dr. Charlie Gilks, an AIDS treatment expert at the World

Health Organization. "It may be that we can continue to use them, but we

need to be aware of their long-term problems."

AIDS drugs are used in combinations, so they could be swapped with others if

necessary.

Experts have suspected that AIDS drugs could cause heart problems, but no

definitive evidence has been available. The drugs come with many side

effects, including liver and kidney failure, chronic fatigue syndrome,

hepatitis and jaundice.

Jens D. Lundgren of the University of Copenhagen and colleagues analyzed

data from more than 33,000 people infected with the AIDS virus in Europe,

the United States and Australia to study the long-term effects of five AIDS

drugs. The patients were followed for up to five years to see who had heart

problems.

In the 754 patients who had heart attacks, 192 had recently taken Ziagen,

also known as abacavir, and 124 had recently taken Videx, also known as

didanosine.

Those who took Ziagen, included in many AIDS regimens worldwide, had twice

the chances of a heart attack compared to patients on other AIDS drugs, the

researchers reported. Those on Videx had a 50 percent higher chance. But the

risk disappeared six months after patients stopped taking the drugs.

Lundgren said patients already susceptible to heart problems were most at

risk.

For men over 40 who smoked and were overweight, the risk of a heart attack

were as high as 20 percent. Taking Ziagen increased that risk to nearly 40

percent.

For those without known heart risks, the chances of a heart attack were

low - between 1 to 5 percent. Once they were on the drug, their risk ranged

from 2 to nearly 7 percent.

No increased heart attack risk was found for patients on the other drugs in

the study, zidovudine (AZT), stavudine (Zerit) or lamivudine (Epivir). The

medications all block an enzyme that the AIDS virus needs to multiply.

GlaxoSmithKline PLC, which makes Ziagen, said their own analysis of their

database of about 14,600 HIV patients, did not support the Lancet study's

conclusions.

"We were unable to show any increased risk in heart attacks," said Gwenan

White, a company spokeswoman.

The findings could influence how AIDS patients are treated globally, as

health authorities like WHO reconsider their treatment guidelines. Ziagen

and Videx are currently recommended by WHO for people with HIV worldwide.

"In developed countries, doctors have 24 different antiretrovirals to choose

from if one isn't appropriate. But if that happens in resource-poor

countries, it is not so simple," said Gilks, who was not connected to the

study.

As AIDS patients continue to live longer, experts said they would probably

see more of the rarer side effects emerge.

"No drug is risk-free," Lundgren said. "For all patients, it's a matter of

finding the right balance."