THE DIABETES drug Avandia has been withdrawn from the Irish and European markets, following a recommendation from the European Medicines Agency yesterday.
The recommendation was made because of concerns about the drug’s links with heart attacks. Avandia, which treats type 2 diabetes, is one of a number of drugs manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) in Cork.
The Irish Medicines Board, which took part in the European Medicines Agency review, said that the review concluded that the risks of rosiglitazone-containing medicine such as Avandia outweighed their benefits and those medicines should no longer be prescribed.
The Irish Medicine Board director, Dr Joan Gilvarry, said rosiglitazone has been monitored closely and continually evaluated at European level since it was first licensed.
