Acarbose

Acarbose slows the digestion of carbohydrates in the body, which helps control blood sugar levels. Acarbose is used together with diet and exercise to treat type 2 diabetes. Acarbose is sometimes used in combination with insulin or other diabetes medications you take by mouth.

Introduction #

Generic name: Acarbose

Brand name: Precose

Dosage form: oral tablet (100 mg; 25 mg; 50 mg)

Drug class: Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors

Uses #

Treatment of Type 2 diabetes mellitus

Benefits #

In Treatment of Type 2 diabetes mellitus

• Glucobay 50 Tablet is a medicine that helps to control high blood glucose (sugar) levels when given in combination with other anti-diabetics. It works by slowing down the digestion and absorption of glucose (carbohydrates) from your digestive tract, thereby decreasing the rise in blood glucose levels immediately after meals.

• Lowering blood glucose levels is an essential part of managing diabetes and reduces the risk of getting serious complications of diabetes such as kidney or eye damage, nerve problems and loss of limbs.

• This medicine will also reduce the risk of death from cardiovascular disease if you have type 2 diabetes and already have cardiovascular disease. Taking this medicine regularly along with proper diet and exercise will help you live a normal, healthy life.

Directions for use #

Take this medicine in the dose and duration as advised by your doctor. Swallow it as a whole. Do not chew, crush or break it. Glucobay 50 Tablet is to be taken with food.

How it works #

Glucobay 50 Tablet is an anti-diabetic medicine. It inhibits the intestinal enzymes responsible for breaking complex sugars into simple sugars such as glucose. This prevents blood glucose levels from rising very high immediately after meals.

Side effects #

Acarbose may cause serious side effects. Call your doctor at once if you have:

• Severe constipation

• Severe stomach pain, diarrhea that is watery or bloody

• Easy bruising, unusual bleeding (nose, mouth, vagina, or rectum), purple or red pinpoint spots under your skin

• Liver problems–nausea, upper stomach pain, itching, tired feeling, loss of appetite, dark urine, clay-colored stools, jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes).

Common side effects of acarbose may include:

• Stomach discomfort, gas, bloating

• Mild diarrhea

• Mild skin rash or itching.

Warnings #

You should not use acarbose if you have inflammatory bowel disease, an ulcer or blockage in your intestines, or cirrhosis of the liver. Do not use acarbose if you are in a state of diabetic ketoacidosis (call your doctor for treatment with insulin).