Drugs regulator to review safety of gliflozins for type 2 diabetes patients.

The European drugs regulatory body has launched a review of the group of diabetes drugs known as SGLT2 inhibitors – or gliflozins – following cases of diabetic ketoacidosis among patients with type 2 diabetes taking the drugs.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) said it was conducting the review after 101 cases of diabetic ketoacidosis - a condition usually seen in patients with type 1 diabetes - were reported worldwide in patients with type 2 diabetes using the drugs to help control their blood glucose.

All the cases were serious and some required patients to be admitted to hospital, the EMA said, while some patients’ blood glucose levels were not elevated as is usually characteristic of the condition, potentially delaying diagnosis and treatment.

SGLT2 (sodium-glucose co-transporter-2) inhibitors lower blood sugar by increasing the amount of glucose that is removed via the kidneys.

The regulator said it was writing to GPs and other clinicians about the risk of diabetic ketoacidosis and how to manage it and that ‘patients who have any concerns about their diabetes medicines should consult their doctor or pharmacist’.

More on this Pulse story here.  http://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/clinical/diabetes/drugs-regulator-to-review-safety-of-gliflozins-for-type-2-diabetes-patients/20010241.article#.VX7yUVWUzGc

The FDA recently issued a warning about Invokana side effects that have led to hospital visits for a number of users. On the heels of that warning, Invokana manufacturer Janssen Pharmaceuticals published a press release touting the benefits of their type 2 diabetes drug, with no mention of the FDA warning released just a few days prior.

The FDA announcement followed 20 adverse event reports that the agency received between March 2013 and June 2014. All of the reports involved a serious condition known as ketoacidosis, characterized by dangerously high levels of blood acids known as ketones. All of the patients of these adverse events required hospitalization to treat their condition.

http://injurylawyer-news.com/2015/06/fda-issues-warning-invokana-side-effects/

Janssen are obviously more concerned about keeping their profits up than the health risks Invokana poses to diabetics.

But hey at least its good news for injury lawyers