Drugs for diabetes are represented by several groups of drugs whose main purpose is to reduce the blood sugar level of the patient.
Diabetes and its varieties
Diabetes mellitus is a group of diseases whose main symptom is hyperglycemia, that is, an increase in the amount of glucose in the blood. However, the mechanism of the disease will differ depending on the type of diabetes and for each of them the treatment tactics will be different.
- Type 1 diabetes occurs as a result of the cessation of insulin production, which transfers glucose from the blood to the tissues. The reason for this is in the death of pancreatic cells, which normally synthesize insulin.
- Type 2 diabetes develops due to the insensitivity of tissues to insulin, while it produces as much as you need and even more. The main reason is obesity.
Treatment of type 1 diabetes
Given the mechanism of development of the disease, the only way to treat type 1 diabetes mellitus is to inject artificial insulin from the outside. Preparations for the treatment of type 1 diabetes in tablets do not exist, as well as other alternative therapies for this disease.
Insulin preparations are divided according to the duration of action.
- Insulins of average duration and prolonged action are usually administered 2 times a day, the dose is established by the doctor. They maintain constant normal glucose levels throughout the day.
- Insulins of short and ultrashort action are introduced immediately before a meal. Their dose will depend on how much food the patient plans to eat.
Treatment of type 2 diabetes
The treatment of the initial stage of type 2 diabetes is carried out by correcting the diet. Sometimes this alone is enough to normalize blood glucose levels.
With the ineffectiveness of the diet for several months, patients are recommended to take medication, with diabetes, their choice is large enough.
Most common medication for the treatment of type 2 diabetes:
- sulfonylurea preparations (gliclazide),
- glinides (repaglinide, nateglinide),
- biguanides (metformin),
- thiazolidinediones (pioglitazone, rosiglitazone),
- alpha glucosidase inhibitors (acarbose),
- glucagon-like peptide receptor agonists (liraglutide, exenatide, etc.),
- dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors (sitagliptin and others),
- glyflozins.
In the last stage of type 2 diabetes, in addition to insensitivity of tissues to insulin, there is a tendency to reduce insulin production. Therefore, taking only sugar-lowering drugs become ineffective. In this case, patients are shown combined treatment with tablet drugs and insulin injections.
Diabetes treatment is selected individually by an endocrinologist according to the results of a complete survey.