|
Avandia
Diabetes Drug
Patient
Information Sheet
Rosiglitazone (marketed as Avandia)
This is a summary of the most important information about Avandia.
For details, talk to your healthcare professional.
What is
Avandia used for?
Avandia, in addition to diet and exercise, improves blood sugar
control in adults with type 2 (non-insulin-dependent) diabetes.
Avandia can be used alone or in combination with a sulfonylurea,
metformin, or insulin. Avandia can also be used in addition
to a sulfonylurea plus metformin when diet, exercise, and both
agents are not enough to control blood sugar.
Who should
not take Avandia?
* Do not use Avandia for type I diabetes (juvenile diabetes)
or diabetic ketoacidosis.
* If you have heart failure, fluid retention, or active liver
disease your healthcare provider will evaluate you to decide
if Avandia is right for you.
General
Precautions with Avandia:
* Avandia is in the same class of drugs as Rezulin, which has
been associated with rare but serious liver injury, including
liver failure leading to transplant or death. Because Avandia’s
liver safety profile is not fully determined yet, your doctor
will do blood tests that evaluate your liver before starting
you on Avandia. These blood tests should be repeated every two
months for the first year, then regularly after that.
* Call your healthcare provider right away if you develop nausea,
vomiting, stomach pain, a feeling of tiredness or having no
energy, loss of appetite, dark urine, or jaundice (yellow coloring
of eyes and skin). These may be symptoms of liver problems.
* Patients who experience an unusually rapid increase in weight
or retain fluid (edema) or who develop shortness of breath or
other symptoms of heart failure while on Avandia should immediately
report these symptoms to their healthcare provider.
* Call your doctor if you develop visual symptoms, such as decreased
vision or blurry vision, while taking Avandia. Some patients
have developed macular edema (a swelling in the back of the
eye) while taking Avandia. All patients with diabetes should
have eye examinations regularly, no matter what medicine(s)
they are taking for diabetes..
* When taking Avandia with other oral diabetes medicines, there
is a risk of your blood sugar becoming dangerously low. Ask
your healthcare provider about symptoms of low blood sugar,
conditions that make low blood sugar more likely, and what to
do if you get it. Make sure to explain to family members.
* If you are a woman who has not reached menopause but have
not had menstrual periods, you may become pregnant unless you
use an effective method of birth control. Avandia, like other
drugs in this class, may cause insulin resistant women to start
ovulating again.
* Women should tell their doctor if they notice any changes
in their monthly menstrual cycle.
* During periods of stress on the body, such as fever, trauma,
infection, or surgery, your medication requirements may change;
contact your healthcare provider promptly.
Managing your diabetes should include diet control. Caloric
restriction, weight loss as needed, and exercise are essential
for the proper treatment of diabetes because they help improve
insulin sensitivity and the effectiveness of drug therapy.
What should
I tell my doctor or healthcare provider?
Tell your healthcare provider if you are trying to become pregnant,
are already pregnant, or are breast-feeding.
Because certain other medication may interact with Avandia,
review all medications that you are taking with your healthcare
provider, including those that you take without a prescription.
What are some possible side effects of Avandia? (This list is
NOT a complete list of side effects reported with Avandia. Your
healthcare provider can discuss with you a more complete list
of side effects.)
* cough or cold
* headache
* inflammation of the sinuses
* back pain
* swelling or fluid retention
Reports
of Patients’ Experiences After Avandia Became Available:
There have been reports of inflammation of the liver (hepatitis)
and elevated liver enzymes. It has not been determined whether
these events are directly related to Avandia. It is recommended
that patients taking Avandia have their liver enzymes monitored
periodically.
For more detailed information about Avandia, ask your healthcare
provider.
|
|
|
