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(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- Common treatments for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) may have some dangerous side effects.
A new report finds COPD patients who use inhaled anticholinergic agents -- medications that help reduce bronchospasm -- have a significantly higher risk of heart attack, stroke, or dying from cardiovascular disease.
Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine looked at the cardiovascular risks associated with using inhaled anticholinergics long-term. They analyzed 103 articles and 17 randomized trials that enrolled 14,783 patients.
The study shows inhaled anticholinergics increased the risk of cardiovascular death, heart attack, or stroke significantly, by 58 percent. Specifically, they increased the risk of heart attack by 53 percent and raised the risk of cardiovascular death by 80 percent.
Cardiovascular death is a more frequent cause of death in patients with COPD than respiratory causes, with the proportion of cardiovascular deaths increasing with the severity of the disease, study authors write. Clinicians and patients should carefully consider these potential long-term cardiovascular risks of inhaled anticholinergics in the treatment of COPD, and decide whether these risks are an acceptable trade-off in return for their symptomatic benefits.
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COPD is the fourth leading cause of chronic illness and death in the United States. Inhaled anticholinergic agents are widely used in COPD patients -- the most commonly prescribed is inhaled tiotropium. More than eight million patients worldwide have used it since its approval in 2002.
SOURCE: JAMA, 2008;300:1439-1450
The article was reported by Ivanhoe.com, which offers Medical Alerts by e-mail every day of the week. To subscribe, click on: http://www.ivanhoe.com/newsalert/.
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