Emphysema and COPD Drug Linked to Increased Risk of Heart Disease

A drug that at one time was commonly used in the treatment of emphysema, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and other respiratory conditions may dramatically increase the risk of heart disease, United States researchers have found.

Ipratropium was sold under the brand names Atrovent and Combivent and made by Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals. For years, the drug was administered through an inhaler to prevent bronchospasms in patients battling a variety of respiratory diseases.

Ipratropium use has largely been replaced by another drug, Spiriva, made by Pfizer Inc. However, in March 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned that Spiriva may increase the risk of stroke.

Researchers from Northwestern University in Chicago conducted a study and found that patients who took Atrovent or Combivent were 34 percent more likely to suffer a fatal heart attack or arrhythmia than COPD patients who used a similar medication, albuterol, or took no drugs at all for the condition. The study focused on 145,000 military veterans who were newly diagnosed with COPD from 1999 to 2003.

The researchers are pushing for increased warnings on Atrovent and Combivent about the risk of heart failure.

 An estimated 12 million people in the United States have COPD, making the group of respiratory diseases the fourth-leading cause of death among Americans.

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