Doctor Says Glimepiride & Metformin Combo Acts Synergestically in Type 2 Diabetes ( NIDDM ) Treatment
Type 2 diabetes is an increasingly common chronic disease that occurs in people who have difficulty in either generating sufficient insulin or using it. Technically speaking, Type 2 diabetes is a progressive disorder with a consistent and steady increase in glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) over time associated with enhanced risk of micro- and macrovascular complications (read eye and kidney diseases among host of others) and a substantial reduction in life expectancy.
Glimepiride is a white to yellowish-white, crystalline, odorless to practically odorless powder formulated into tablets of 1-mg, 2-mg, and 4-mg strengths for oral administration.
Glimepiride works by increasing the amount of insulin that the pancreas releases while also encouraging the use of sugar in the blood by the cells in the body which need it.
Glimepiride is indicated as an adjunct to diet and exercise to lower the blood glucose in patients with noninsulin-dependent (Type 2) diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) whose hyperglycemia cannot be controlled by diet and exercise alone. Glimepiride may be used concomitantly with metformin when diet, exercise, and glimepiride or metformin alone do not result in adequate glycemic control.
Metformin, on the other hand, reduces the amount of glucose released from the liver and increases the amount taken up and used by the rest of the body. The drug also reduces the level of fats in blood and helps people stabilize or reduce their weight, which incidentally has a distinct potential for abuse.
“Many people with Type 2 diabetes will require combination treatment to achieve a much-improved glycemic control and oral hypoglycemic agent Solosamet tablet (combination of 2 mg glimepiride and 500 mg of metformin) holds so much promise for individuals with Type 2 diabetes,” said Dr. Araceli Panelo, a diabetologist and executive director of the Institute for the Studies of Diabetes Foundation.
Dr. Panelo explained that Type 2 is a complex disease and one could get significantly better therapeutic effects by targeting different systems: a glimepiride to help the pancreas while metformin to work on the liver. Source: Inquirer
“Combining drugs can give patients lower doses, fewer side effects, and better glycemic control,” the doctor concluded.
Note that some people have developed a life-threatening condition called lactic acidosis while taking metformin. Get emergency medical help if you have any of these symptoms of lactic acidosis: weakness, increasing sleepiness, slow heart rate, cold feeling, muscle pain, shortness of breath, stomach pain, feeling light-headed, and fainting.
Personally I would like to see some hard numbers (read: double-blind-placebo-controlled clinical trials) and possibly a study on long term complications before jumping to conclusions.
Filed under Diabetes, Glimepiride, Metformin, NIDDM
