Trouble Seeing? Might Be Your Diabetes Drug

Macular edema is two to five times more common in type 2 diabetics taking pioglitazone or rosiglitazone, according to an article published June 11, 2012, by MedPage Today.  The original research was reported in Archives of Internal Medicine.

The macula is the dark area in the middle of the right half of this retina photo

The macula is the most sensitive part of the retina at the back of your eyeball.  Edema, or watery swelling, of the macula can impair vision.

Very few patients in the U.S. use rosiglitazone any longer because of concerns about heart toxicity.  Pioglitazone has recently been implicated as a cause of bladder cancer.

You can avoid some diabetes drug complications by controlling blood sugars with diet and exercise.

Steve Parker, M.D. 

Reference:
Idris I, et al “Association between thiazolidinedione treatment and risk of macular edema among patients with type 2 diabetes” Arch Intern Med 2012; DOI:10.1001/archinternmed.2012.1938.

2 Comments

Filed under Diabetes Complications, Drugs for Diabetes

2 responses to “Trouble Seeing? Might Be Your Diabetes Drug

  1. This is what happens when drugs get approved based upon biomarkers rather than hard end points, be they micro- or macrovascular in the case of diabetes.

  2. Kenneth Vanderhyde

    Diabetes still has no permanent cure. You can only manage its symptoms and complications.;

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