Drugs Alone Aid Diabetics’ Heart Disease

Most people with diabetes and heart disease should start with drug treatment alone, a new study suggests. Procedures to open blocked arteries did not change rates of death, heart attack or stroke compared with drugs alone. The study included nearly 2,400 people. They were randomly divided into groups. Both groups received drug treatment for diabetes. One group also received either angioplasty or bypass surgery to open blocked arteries. After five years, the groups had similar rates of death, heart attack and stroke. People also were assigned to receive two different types of diabetes drugs. There was no difference in results based on the type of drugs they took. The New England Journal of Medicine published the study online June 6. USA Today and HealthDay News wrote about it.