Autumn asked
My doctor is talking about a new drug called Jardiance. What is it?
Answer
ardiance is the third medication in a relatively new class of drugs known as sodium-glucose co transporter 2 inhibitors, or SGLT2 inhibitors for short. The other two medications are Invokana and Farxiga.
Jardiance (empagiflozin) and the other drugs in the class work by increasing the amount of glucose that is excreted in the kidney. It lowers the re-absorption of said glucose and therefore lowers blood glucose levels. All drugs in the class have similar efficacy. They all lower A1C by about 0.7% to 1%, .reduce weight by 4 to 7 pounds and can lower blood pressure by 3 to 5 points. They also tend to have a favorable side effect profile in terms of not causing hypoglycemia, a real problem with many different diabetes drugs.
Jardiance is a new medication and therefore is only available as a brand name. It will most likely cost you your highest co-pay tier if it is covered at all. Also, they tend to cause yeast infections since the excess glucose is excreted via the urinary tract. This excess glucose makes patients much more susceptible to bacteria and yeast infections. Studies have shown that Jardiance 10 mg/day causes 1 more yeast infection for every 26 women or 38 men treated for about 6 months. In addition to the urinary infections, the class as a whole can raise LDL by about 4 to 8 mg/dL.
