Repaglinide
About
Repaglinide belongs to the category of medicines called 'anti-diabetic primarily used for the management and treatment of type 2 diabetes, especially in persons whose sugar levels are too high and cannot be only controlled by dieting and exercising. Type 2 diabetes is a condition that occurs when there is either less insulin or available insulin is not properly utilized by our body cells for lowering raised blood glucose. It is the most common type of diabetes, accounting for around 90% of total diabetes cases found commonly in middle-aged people. So it is also called adult-onset diabetes or non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM).
Repaglinide contains 'Repaglinide' is a meglitinide that works by increasing the amount of insulin released by the pancreas. It starts acting so quickly on controlling blood sugar levels immediately after a meal. Repaglinide may be advised with or without other medications along with diet and exercise to control blood sugar levels.
Your doctor will decide what dose should be taken for better advice, and it can change timely depending upon your condition. In some cases, you may experience headache, stomach pain, a sign of a common cold, diarrhoea, joint pain and back pain. Most of these side effects of Repaglinide do not require medical attention and gradually resolve over time. However, if the side effects are persistent, reach out to your doctor.
You should not take Repaglinide if you have type 1 diabetes mellitus, renal impairment, metabolic acidosis, including diabetic ketoacidosis (excess acids in your blood), severe kidney, or liver disease. Please inform your doctor if you have any heart disease, are planning to get pregnant, or are breastfeeding. Repaglinide should not be stopped even if you feel better, without consulting your doctor as sugar level keeps changing. If you stop taking Repaglinide abruptly, it may increase your sugar levels which could further increase the risk of eyesight loss (retinopathy), kidney (nephropathy), and nerve damage (neuropathy).
Uses of Repaglinide
Medicinal Benefits
Repaglinide belongs to the group of medicines called “anti-diabetic” indicated in the treatment of type 2 diabetes or non-insulin-dependent diabetes (NIDDM). This medicine is primarily prescribed to persons whose blood sugar levels are high and is even not controlled by diet and exercise alone. Repaglinide consists of Repaglinide belongs to a class of meglitinide that works by increasing the amount of insulin released by the pancreas. It starts acting so quickly on controlling blood sugar levels immediately after a meal. Repaglinide may be advised with or without other medications along with diet and exercise to control blood sugar levels.
Directions for Use
Storage
Side Effects of Repaglinide
- Headache
- Stomach pain
- Sign of a common cold
- Diarrhoea
- Joint pain
- Back pain
In-Depth Precautions and Warning
Drug Warnings
Repaglinide should not be used in patients with type 1 diabetes or with diabetic ketoacidosis (in this condition, there is too much lactic acid accumulated in the blood). Inform your doctor if you take other antidiabetic drugs to adjust the dosage of Repaglinide accordingly. Do not abruptly stop taking Repaglinide midway if the doctor did not advise you. Repaglinide may cause hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar), hence it is advised to make healthy food with enough calories and avoid heavy exercises. Repaglinide is not recommended for use during pregnancy and breastfeeding. Your doctor may advise alternate medications to control your diabetic condition in such cases. Repaglinide is not recommended for people younger than 18 years or over 75 years of age. Before you start taking Repaglinide, tell your doctor if you have serious heart disease or if you have had a stroke, low blood pressure (hypotension), and severe liver or kidney disease. Avoid alcohol intake while using Repaglinide since it may increase the risk of lactic acidosis.
Drug Interactions
Drug-Drug Interactions: Repaglinide may interact with insulin, high blood pressure-lowering pills (amlodipine, metoprolol, atenolol, propranolol, bisoprolol, benazepril, enalapril), water pills/diuretics (hydrochlorothiazide, furosemide), heart failure-related medicines (digoxin), painkiller (aspirin), a medicine used to treat cancer (octreotide, danazol), antibiotics (clarithromycin, trimethoprim, rifampicin), antifungal (itraconazole, ketoconazole), a medicine used to treat high blood fats (gemfibrozil), a medicine used to suppress the immune system (ciclosporin) steroids (prednisolone), medicine prevents blood clots (clopidogrel), a medicine used to treat epilepsy (phenytoin, carbamazepine, phenobarbital), thyroid hormones.
Drug-Food Interactions: Taking Repaglinide with St. John’s wort (herbal medicine) and alcoholic beverages may increase the risk of a rare but serious and potentially life-threatening condition known as lactic acidosis (build-up of lactic acid in the blood) hypoglycemia.
Drug-Disease Interactions: Repaglinide should be avoided in patients with kidney problems, liver problems, cardiovascular disease (heart-related issues), and low blood sugar levels (hypoglycemia) may worsen the condition.
Drug-Drug Interactions Checker List:
Safety Advice
Alcohol
unsafeYou are recommended not to consume alcohol along with Repaglinide to avoid unpleasant side-effects.
Pregnancy
cautionRepaglinide is pregnancy category C drug. As the data around the use of Repaglinide in pregnant women is limited, the use of Repaglinide in pregnancy is restricted. It is highly recommended to consult your doctor before taking this drug in case you are pregnant.
Breast Feeding
cautionIt is unknown whether Repaglinide is excreted in human milk. Please consult a doctor before using Repaglinide while breastfeeding.
Driving
cautionYour driving may be affected if your blood sugar levels are too high or too low. Do not drive or operate machinery if you also experience blurred vision, dizziness or drowsiness due to extremely low or high blood sugar.
Liver
cautionRepaglinide to be taken with caution, especially if you have a history of liver diseases/conditions. The dose may have to be adjusted by your doctor. However, Repaglinide is not recommended for severe liver disease.
Kidney
cautionRepaglinide to be taken with caution, especially if you have a history of Kidney diseases/conditions. The dose may have to be adjusted by your doctor. However, Repaglinide is not recommended for severe kidney disease.
Children
unsafeThe safety and efficacy of Repaglinide in children have not been established. Repaglinide is not recommended in children.
Habit Forming
Diet & Lifestyle Advise
- Fill your half plate with starchy veggies, a quarter with proteins, and a quarter with whole grain.
- Eat at regular intervals. Do not take the long gap between a meal or snack.
- Monitor your blood sugar level regularly, especially when there are a lot of fluctuations.
- Invest at least 150 min of moderate-intensity physical activity and 15 minutes of high-intensity exercise every week.
- Lose weight gradually to achieve a healthy body mass index (18.5 to 24.9).
- Replace refined carbohydrates containing whole-grain foods and increase intake of fruits and veggies and other fibre-enriched foods.
- Reduce intake of saturated fat (or hidden fats) in food like chips, crisps, pastries, biscuits, and samosas. Choose omega 3 fatty acid-containing oils for daily cooking. You may use palm oil, mustard oil, groundnut oil, rice bran oil, and safflower oil for frying.
- Do not take stress as it may elevate your blood sugar level. You may adopt stress management techniques like mindfulness, yoga, or meditation to control stress-related blood sugar changes.
- Opt for low-fat dairy products (low-fat yoghurt, fat-free milk, and cheese, etc.).
- Keep your blood pressure as normal (120/80) as possible as it reduces the risk of cardiovascular diseases in diabetes patients.
Special Advise
- It is advised to monitor your blood sugar levels regularly.
- Keep taking the drug even if you think your blood sugar levels are under control. If you miss a dose, do not take a larger dose, consult your treating physician for advice.
- Take short, frequent meals, avoid prolonged fasting when taking this drug. Beware of hypoglycaemia symptoms include sweating, dizziness, palpitations, shivering, intense thirst, dry mouth, dry skin, frequent urination, etc. Whenever you experience the above-mentioned symptoms, immediately consume 5-6 candies or 3 glucose biscuits or 3 teaspoons of honey/sugar and get in touch with your physician. Make sure to carry these with you at all times, especially for long travels.
- Avoid drinking alcohol while on this drug as it increases the risk of hypoglycaemia (decrease in blood sugar which might be fatal in some cases) and lactic acidosis (when the lactic acid increases in the body, impacting the functioning of various organs in the body).
- Try to quit smoking and reduce carbohydrate-rich food like potato, rice, mangoes, bread, sugar etc.
- Remember, lifestyle modifications are the most important step in controlling blood sugar levels.
Patients Concern
Disease/Condition Glossary
Diabetes mellitus 2, also known as adult-onset diabetes, is a metabolic disease that causes high blood sugar levels. It is type 2 diabetes and occurs when the insulin (a hormone produced by the beta cells of the pancreas) is resistant in breaking the glucose to produce energy (insulin resistance) or the pancreas (an organ behind the stomach) produce little or no insulin at all. This disease mostly occurs in people aged above 40 years, but can also occur in childhood based on the risk factors. The treatment includes oral glucose-lowering medicines and insulin shots.
FAQs
Repaglinide contains Repaglinide that works by increases the amount of insulin released by the pancreas which prevents blood glucose from rising very high after meals.
Hypoglycemia refers to low blood sugar levels, and it is one of the side effects of Repaglinide. Hypoglycemia can occur if you miss or delay your food, drink alcohol, over-exercise, or take other antidiabetic medicine along with this medicine. It is important to monitor blood sugar levels regularly.
Type-2 diabetes generally does not affect healthy children and teens, but it may affect children who are obese, which is also known as Childhood Obesity.
If a person is getting unusually thrust or passing urine frequently more than normal while taking Repaglinide, they should tell it to their doctor as it may be a sign that there is too much sugar in their blood and treatment needs to be adjusted. It may also because of dehydration as Repaglinide can lead to loss of fluids. Increase intake of fluids, if even then you feel thirsty, please consult your doctor.
Your doctor may suggest you go for a regular test for sugar (glucose) in your blood or urine to monitor if diabetes has controlled or not.
Diabetes is a chronic medical condition that means lifelong, so its treatment should also continue for the whole life, so keep taking Repaglinide unless your doctor advises you to stop the medicine.
Repaglinide should be used with caution in heart, kidney or liver diseases, breathing problems, blood disorders, dehydration, alcohol use, foot ulcers, nerve damage, low blood pressure and severe infections. Repaglinide is contraindicated in patients with renal impairment and diabetic ketoacidosis.
In case you feel that your blood sugar level is going down and you are feeling weak, immediately eat sugar candies or drink sugary beverages. It will help to balance the blood sugar level in your body. So, it is advisable to keep sugar candies with you.
