Inhalers Increase Heart Risk

Commonly prescribed inhalers used to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, have been linked to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke and heart disease. According to a study, published this week in the Journal of the American Medical Association, patients treated with the drugs tiotropium or ipratropium were statistically more likely to develop cardiovascular disease or suffer cardiovascular death when compared to patients not treated with tiotropium or ipratropium. Tiotropium or ipratropium can be found in brand name drugs Spiriva, Atrovent and Combivent. Rita Rubin, USA Today 09/23/2008
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