Originally Posted by
Desert Ryder
Thanks? You never stated if you were diabetic or took metformin so I'll presume you aren't either.With that thought, I don't understand why people answer posts that don't relate to them.
Posting one thread, on one forum, in an age specific topic, isn't "splashing it on the internet" IMO.
I never said I didn't want to take the med. I know what some of the side effects are already but I was asking for real usage. The most common is stomach/intestinal issues.
I'm on the road a lot so it could be an issue.
My wife had bad side effects with it so that is why she asked about alternative meds. Insurance dictates step therapy so I have to start with metformin.
Do you want worst case, or likely response? The fact that doctors prescribe the stuff tells me it's worse than not taking it for the relevant condition (high blood glucose). So you're looking for statistical outliers who'll tell you their horror stories, I guess.
Of course, not all the horror stories can be posted by the patient. From
drugs.com:
Death, hypothermia, hypotension, and resistant bradyarrhythmias have been reported due to metformin-associated lactic acidosis. Onset may be subtle and include nonspecific symptoms such as malaise, myalgia, respiratory distress, somnolence, and abdominal distress; laboratory abnormalities include low pH, increased anion gap and elevated blood lactate. The risk of lactic acidosis increases with renal or hepatic impairment, aged 65 years or older, having a radiological study with contrast, surgery, or other procedures, hypoxic states, and excessive alcohol intake. If lactic acidosis is suspected, metformin hydrochloride should be discontinued, supportive measures started in a hospital setting. Prompt hemodialysis is recommended.
Obviously, you'll not hear from the patients who died. In your situation, sounds like you
need to discuss the lactic acidosis symptoms with your pharmacist or doctor so you can recognize them and get to a hospital for dialysis ASAP if you get those symptoms.