Avandia Information

Avandia (rosiglitazone) is used to hold down blood sugar levels in people with type 2 diabetes (also known as "non-insulin dependent" or "adult onset" diabetes).

Avandia is a new type of diabetes medication. It can be used alone or in conjunction with metformin (Glucophage) or a member of the sulfonylurea class of diabetes drugs (Diabinese, Micronase, Orinase). It takes effect slowly. You may not see a reduction in blood sugar levels for the first 2 weeks of therapy, and it may take 2 to 3 months for the medication to deliver maximum results.

Avandia work (Avandia Mechanism)

Avandia is a drug that reduces the amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood. It is in a class of anti-diabetic drugs called "thiazolidinediones" that are used in the treatment of type II diabetes. The other member in this class is pioglitazone (Actos).

Blood sugar levels are ordinarily controlled by the body's natural supply of insulin, which helps sugar move out of the bloodstream and into the cells. Patients with type II diabetes cannot make enough insulin, and the cells of their body do not respond normally to the reduced amounts of insulin that are present. (Insulin is the hormone produced by the pancreas that stimulates cells to remove glucose from the blood.) Avandia (rosiglitazone) often is referred to as an "insulin sensitizer" because it attaches to the insulin receptors on cells throughout the body and causes the cells to become more sensitive (more responsive) to insulin.

Avandia works first by decreasing sugar production, then by helping the body make more efficient use of whatever insulin is available. It does not increase the actual amount of insulin in circulation. As a result, more glucose is removed from the blood. At least some insulin must be produced by the pancreas in order for rosiglitazone to function.

The FDA approved Avandia on May 28, 1999.

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