Data show link between TZDs, DME

Researchers at the University of Sheffield and colleagues reported data showing that the use of thiazolidinediones (TZDs) is associated with a 3-6 fold increased risk of diabetic macular edema. The retrospective study included 103,368 Type II diabetics in the U.K. without DME at baseline from The Health Improvement Network (THIN) database. At one year, the incidence of DME in patients receiving TZDs was 1.3% vs. 0.2% for non-TZD users. Data were presented at the American Diabetes Association meeting in San Diego.

GlaxoSmithKline plc (LSE:GSK; NYSE:GSK) said in a statement that information on macular edema has been in the product labeling of TZDs for several years, including its Avandia rosiglitazone, a TZD peroxisome proliferation activated receptor ( PPAR gamma) agonist. The pharma also said macular edema has not been confirmed in long-term outcomes studies with Avandia, and that postmarketing reports of DME in patients taking the drug have been very rare. ...