Medications for Type 2 Diabetes

Sulfonylurea Drugs

Common names include:

• Chlorpropamide (Diabinese)
• Glipizide (Glucotrol, Glucotrol XL)
• Glyburide (Micronase, Glynase PresTab, DiaBeta)
• Glimepiride (Amaryl)
• Tolazamide (Tolinase)
• Tolbutamide (Orinase)

Sulfonylurea drugs stimulate the beta cells in the pancreas to make more insulin. They also help your body's cells use insulin better.

Sulfonylureas are generally taken 1-2 times per day, 30 minutes before a meal. You should take them at the same time each day, just as you plan your meals at about the same time every day.

All sulfonylureas have similar effects on your blood sugar level, but they may have different side effect profiles. Based on the results of your blood sugar monitoring, your doctor will work with you to adjust your dosage. Talk to your doctor about which side effects you should watch out for.

Meglitinides

• Repaglinide (Prandin)

Like sulfonylureas, repaglinide helps the pancreas produce more insulin. However, it works faster than sulfonylureas, and thus allows for more flexible timing of doses and meals. Repaglinide also carries the risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). Be sure to talk with your doctor and/or a registered dietitian about balancing the amount of food you eat with the amount of medication you take to help reduce the risk of hypoglycemia.

Repaglinide is usually taken 2-4 times a day, within 30 minutes before each meal.

Biguanides

• Metformin (Glucophage)

Metformin works in the liver to make it produce less glucose. Metformin can also lower blood fat levels and possibly lead to minor weight loss, which can ultimately help with blood sugar control.

Metformin is usually taken 1-3 times a day with meals. Metformin does not cause the body to make more insulin. Therefore, when it is used alone, it rarely causes hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). However, when combined with other diabetes drugs, it can cause hypoglycemia.

Thiazolidinediones

Common names include:

• Rosiglitazone (Avandia)
• Pioglitazone (Actos)

These medications are also called "insulin sensitizers" because they make the cells in your body better able to use insulin. Specifically, they work in the muscle and fat cells. They may also help decrease the amount of glucose released by the liver. These drugs do not cause the body to make more insulin. Therefore, when they are used alone, they rarely cause hypoglycemia (low blood sugar). However, when they are combined with other diabetes drugs, they can cause hypoglycemia.

They can be prescribed once or twice a day, and may be taken with or without food, at about the same time each day.

Alpha-glucosidase Inhibitors

Common names include:

• Acarbose (Precose)
• Miglitol (Glyset)

These medications are also called "starch blockers" because they slow down the digestion of carbohydrates (starches and sugars), which are the major food sources of glucose. This slow-down in digestion leads to a slow-down in absorption, and therefore, a slower increase in blood sugar after a meal. When used alone, alpha-glucosidase inhibitors do not cause hypoglycemia, however when combined with other diabetes drugs, they may cause this side effect.

Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors should be taken with the first bite of each main meal. When you initially start this medicine, your doctor may have you take it less frequently.

D-phenylalanine Derivatives

• Nateglinide (Starlix)

Nateglinide helps the pancreas quickly produce more insulin. It can be prescribed for use with each meal and should be taken within 30 minutes before meals. Do not take a dose of Nateglinide if you skip a meal. Although this drug works when taken alone, for some people it may be more effective when it is combined with metformin (Glucophage). Nateglinide also carries the risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar).

When to Contact Your Healthcare Provider

Diabetes pills do not work for everyone. Also, they may become less effective after a few months or years. Until you are well accustomed to your medications, be sure to monitor your blood sugar levels regularly and record the information to tell your doctor. This will help you and your doctor recognize if your pills are not working properly and if you need a change in treatment.

Report the following to your doctor immediately:

• Fasting blood glucose (before breakfast) less than 100 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl)
• Symptoms of hypoglycemia: sweatiness, shakiness, and confusion

When you start taking diabetes medications, they may cause some side effects. (Each drug can cause different effects, so ask your doctor what to expect from your drug regimen.) However, many of these effects go away as your body adjusts to the medicine. If side effects persist, tell your doctor.

Once your diabetes is under adequate control on oral medications, it may not be necessary to continue monitoring your blood sugar levels on a regular basis. Many type 2 diabetes (not taking insulin) can be adequately managed by using another test called glycosylated hemoglobin or hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c), which is performed in a doctor’s office. Unlike blood sugar levels, HbA1c has the advantage of measuring average blood glucose levels over a three-month period, which marks the effectiveness of diabetes management over the long-term. Most diabetics are recommended to keep their HbA1c levels below 7 mg/dl.

In a recent study of 453 moderately well-controlled type 2 diabetics who did not take insulin, researchers investigated whether patients who undertook regular self-monitoring of their blood sugar had better control over their diabetes than patients who did not monitor their blood sugar for an average of three years. They found no significant difference in HbA1c levels between the groups, suggesting that regular blood sugar testing in diabetics whose condition is under reasonably good control without insulin may not be necessary. * 2 However, you should be sure to have a discussion with your physician before discontinuing blood sugar monitoring.

Insulin

To help control your diabetes, you may need to inject insulin. Insulin must be taken as an injection. If it were taken by mouth, it would be digested by the stomach before it reached your bloodstream where it needs to do its work.

Insulin Injection Sites

© 2008 Nucleus Medical Art, Inc.

To work properly, the amount of insulin you use must be balanced with the amount and type of food you eat, the amount of exercise you do, and the other diabetes medications you are taking.

If you change your diet, exercise, and/or medications without changing your insulin dose, your blood glucose level can drop too low or rise too high. Before injecting insulin, you should check your blood glucose level with a blood glucose monitor. This will help you to determine how much insulin you need.

All About Insulin

The three characteristics of insulin are:

Onset —the length of time it takes for the insulin to reach the bloodstream and begin lowering blood glucose after it is injected

Peak Time —the time during which insulin is at its maximum strength in terms of lowering blood glucose levels

Duration —how long the insulin continues to lower blood glucose

The main types of insulin available are:

*Each person has a unique response to insulin, so the times mentioned here are approximates.

In the table below are types of insulin and common brand names.

Methods of Insulin Delivery

In the past, for insulin to be used by the body, it must be moved through the outermost layer of skin and into fatty tissue.

Insulin by inhalation is a breakthrough method of getting insulin into your body. The Food and Drug Administration has recently approved the new drug, Exubera, and soon it will be available to consumers.

There are a few ways of getting insulin into your body by injection. Some examples are:

Syringe —The syringes you will use are small and have fine points and special coatings that help to make injecting as easy and painless as possible. When insulin injections are done properly, most people find that they are relatively painless.

Insulin is usually given as a subcutaneous injection . This means that the needle goes into the fat layer between the skin and the muscle to deliver a certain amount of medicine.

Pump —This is a computerized device, about the size of a beeper that you wear on your belt or in your pocket. It delivers a steady, measured dose of insulin through a flexible plastic tube called a cannula.

With the aid of a small needle, the cannula is inserted through the skin into the fatty tissue and is taped in place. In some products, the needle is removed and only a soft catheter remains in place. You control the release of insulin from the pump, based on your meals and your blood sugar level.

Because the pump continuously releases tiny doses of insulin, this delivery system most closely mimics the body's normal release of insulin. Also, pumps can deliver very precise insulin doses for different times of day, which may be necessary to correct the dawn phenomenon—the rise of blood sugar that occurs in the hours before and after waking.

Pen —The insulin pen looks very much like an old-fashioned cartridge pen, except that it has a needle and holds a cartridge of insulin. Pens are particularly useful for people who are often on the go, or whose coordination is impaired.

Note:

• Check your insulin's expiration date. If you haven't finished it before then, throw the rest away.
• Store unopened bottles of insulin in the refrigerator. Do not store your insulin at extreme temperatures.
• Keep the bottle of insulin you are using at room temperature. Injecting cold insulin can sometimes make the injection more painful. (Most pharmacists believe that insulin kept at room temperature will last for about one month.)