Home Current Issue Previous Issues Published Ahead-of-Print For Authors Journal Info
Skip Navigation LinksHome > April 2001 - Volume 321 - Issue 4 > Appetite Suppressants and Valvular Heart Disease
The American Journal of the Medical Sciences:
April 2001 - Volume 321 - Issue 4 - pp 285-291
Symposium

Appetite Suppressants and Valvular Heart Disease

Weissman, Neil J. MD

Collapse Box

Abstract

The association between valvular heart disease and diet pills was discovered several years ago in a small cohort of patients. Subsequent uncontrolled surveys and reports suggested a prevalence of cardiac abnormalities as high as 30%. These results led to widespread concern by millions of appetite suppressant users and the withdrawal of both fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine from the market. Through this review of the literature, it becomes apparent that we have better defined the association between valvular heart disease and appetite suppressants; nonetheless, many questions and controversies remain. Most large scale, multicenter, controlled studies have shown that a prevalence of significant valve regurgitation is between 2 and 12% and that the likelihood of disease increases with increasing dose and/or duration of appetite suppressant use, but several other issues, such as the mechanism of action, remain unanswered.

© Copyright 2001 Southern Society for Clinical Investigation

You currently do not have access to this article.

You may need to:

Note: If your society membership provides for full-access to this article, you may need to login on your society’s web site first.

Article Tools

You currently do not have access to this article.

You may need to:

Note: If your society membership provides for full-access to this article, you may need to login on your society’s web site first.

Search for Similar Articles
You may search for similar articles that contain these same keywords or you may modify the keyword list to augment your search.