Unregistered User If this is not your name, click here.
		Contact Us | Order Now | Journals | Bookstore | Register a colleague
	Select a ChannelAcneAIDS and HIVAllergy OtherAlzheimer'sAnaesthesiology OtherAngina Pectoris/MIAnxietyArthritis OtherAsthmaBack PainBacterial InfectionsBladder CancerBone Marrow TransplantationBreast CancerCardiology OtherCataractCell TransplantationCervical CancerCholesterol/Lipid disordersCirrhosisClinical PharmacologyColorectal CancerCongestive Heart FailureContact DermatitisContraceptionCOPDCystic FibrosisDental and Oral DisordersDepressionDermatology OtherDiabetesDialysisEating DisordersElbowEmergency MedicineEndocrinology OtherEpilepsyErectile DysfunctionFibromyalgiaGastro OtherGeneticsGenitourinary OtherGeriatricsGERD/GastritisGlaucomaH. Pylori/UlcerHaematology OtherHair LossHeadachesHepa/Biliary OtherHepatitisHipHRTHypertensionIBDImmunologyInfectious OtherInfertilityIntensive CareIrritable Bowel SyndromeKneeLeukemiasLiver CancerLung CancerLupusLymphomasMelanomaMenopauseMultiple Sclerosis Nephrology OtherNeurologic OtherNutritional / Metabolic OtherOb/Gyn OtherObesityOncology OtherOphth. OtherOphthalmic SurgeryOrgan TransplantationOrthopaedics OtherOsteoarthritisOsteoporosisOtitisOtorhino. OtherOvarian CancerPaediatricsPainPancreatic CancerParkinson'sPregnancyProstate CancerPsychiatry OtherPulmonary OtherRadiologyRenal CancerRenal FailureRespiratory InfectionsRheumatoid arthritisRheumatology OtherRhinitisSchizophreniaShoulderSleep ApnoeaSleep DisordersSpineStrokeSTDsSurgeryThyroid DisordersTransfusionTransplant Surgery OtherTraumaUrinary IncontinenceUrinary tract infectionsVaccinologyVascular DisordersViral Infections

SEARCH   News Bookstore Medline The Web Meetings & Congresses Complete Doctor's Guide    EXPLORE :    All News   All Webcasts   All Cases   All Meetings & Congresses   All Medical Resources New drugs / indications English Dictionary Medical Dictionary Thesaurus Warning | Privacy | Awards  Favourite Journals  Click here to choose your favourite journals  Favourite Sites  Click here to choose your favourite sites  Languages  Select languageEnglishFrançais

Good Long-Term Results For Patients On Ramipril After Heart Attack LONDON -- May 23, 1997 -- A follow-up study known as the AIREX (Acute Infarction Ramipril Efficacy Extension) Study in this weeks issue of The Lancet reports a significant reduction in relative risk of dying in patients using ramipril. The follow-up investigation was done three years after the close of the original AIRE Study. The original study investigated treatment of patients after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) heart attack with the drug ramipril. In the study by Dr Alistair Hall and colleagues, from the United Kingdom (UK), the mortality status of the 603 patients from the UK involved in the AIRE Study was investigated so that magnitude, duration, and reliability of survival benefits observed after treatment with ramipril when compared with placebo could be assessed. Ramipril is an angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitor that prevents constriction of blood vessels and aids circulation. Through government records, death or survival of the patients three years after the close of the AIRE Study was ascertained. The findings were positive with a significant reduction in relative risk of dying found in patients who had been allocated ramipril. By March 1, 1996, death from all causes had occurred in 117 (38.9%) of the 301 patients randomly assigned placebo and in 83 (27.5%) of 302 patients randomly assigned ramipril; an absolute reduction in mortality of 11.4% (114 additional 5-year survivors per 1000 patients treated for an average of 12.4 months). The authors concluded that "administration of ramipril to patients with clinically defined heart failure after AMI results in a survival benefit that is not only large in magnitude, but also sustained over many years". The authors go on to recommend that "once a clinician has decided to treat an individual patient with an ACE inhibitor after AMI, therapy should be continued indefinitely, unless tolerance develops". Medical literature is swamped with drug trials but doctors fail to "apply fully the findings" the authors note. On the basis of the findings of AIREX, the authors "strongly encourage colleagues to prescribe a drug at a dosage and frequency of administation that has been convincingly shown to produce long-term survival benefit". E-mail this page to a friend or colleague! To print, use this version