Ballantyne points to the success of a delayed-release niacin pill from Kos Pharmaceuticals (nasdaq: KOSP - news - people ), which is increasingly popular among cardiologists.
In the study where it helped patients lose weight, the drug also raised good cholesterol, or high-density lipoprotein (HDL), by 23%, almost as much as Niaspan, the sustained-release niacin drug made by Kos Pharmaceuticals (nasdaq: KOSP - news - people ) that is the main currently available treatment for raising HDL. Rimonabont also cut triglycerides, another risk factor for heart disease, by 16%.