A polypill is a medication, which contains a combination of five life-saving drugs called “polypill” that promises to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in healthy people. It was actually conceived, developed and clinically tested in Bangalore,India.
The pill is a result of a three-year study conducted by three doctors from St. John’s Medical College, Bangalore along with a team of experts from McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada.
The combination
The "polypill" would contain 3 blood pressure medications at low dose:
a diuretic, such as bendroflumethiazide,a beta-blocker such as atenolol,
an ACE inhibitor such as enalapril.
This is combined with
a statin such as simvastatin,aspirin at a dose of 75 mg and
Follic acid(Follic acid has been shown to reduce the level of homocysteine in the blood which is another risk factor for heart disease).
The criticism
Although several group of physicians accept the rational combination of proven life-saving drugs in easily administered and cost-saving formulations, especially for the secondary prevention of Cardio vascular diseases, they expresses their concern over, proclaiming polypill as the principal pathway to primary prevention of Cardio vascular disease.
Several scientific questions currently remain, especially with respect to primary prevention. How will this drug combination alter with behaviour change involving healthy diets, regular exercise, and smoking cessation?
Critics also worry that the promised protection of a polypill may work against people giving up unhealthy habits like smoking or bad diet.
Another criticism is that,a person would be subjected to different drugs unnecessarily even if he had one ailment.
Links
Can polypill replace poly-policy for heart health
The pill is a result of a three-year study conducted by three doctors from St. John’s Medical College, Bangalore along with a team of experts from McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada.
The combination
The "polypill" would contain 3 blood pressure medications at low dose:
a diuretic, such as bendroflumethiazide,a beta-blocker such as atenolol,
an ACE inhibitor such as enalapril.
This is combined with
a statin such as simvastatin,aspirin at a dose of 75 mg and
Follic acid(Follic acid has been shown to reduce the level of homocysteine in the blood which is another risk factor for heart disease).
The criticism
Although several group of physicians accept the rational combination of proven life-saving drugs in easily administered and cost-saving formulations, especially for the secondary prevention of Cardio vascular diseases, they expresses their concern over, proclaiming polypill as the principal pathway to primary prevention of Cardio vascular disease.
Several scientific questions currently remain, especially with respect to primary prevention. How will this drug combination alter with behaviour change involving healthy diets, regular exercise, and smoking cessation?
Critics also worry that the promised protection of a polypill may work against people giving up unhealthy habits like smoking or bad diet.
Another criticism is that,a person would be subjected to different drugs unnecessarily even if he had one ailment.
Links
Can polypill replace poly-policy for heart health
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