# Glibenclamide



## Field Miller (Jul 13, 2016)

I've been a type 2 diabetic for some 21 years and throughout that time I've taken one Glibenclamide 2.5mg tablet each day.

I've discovered, having had trouble recently getting the medication from my local Boots Pharmacy, which manages my prescription, and having contacted Teva UK, that 'due to supply problems' the product has been discontinued. 

My GP's practice has prescribed me Metformin 500g x 2 per day but this has caused havoc with my blood sugar levels.

Firstly, has anyone else recently experienced the same supply problem?

Secondly, does anyone know of another company that supplies Glibenclamide into the UK?


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## Northerner (Jul 13, 2016)

Hi Field Miller, welcome to the forum  I haven't any personal experience of glibenclamide, but I see it is a member of the sulphonylurea types of medication. These meds stimulate your pancreas to produce more insulin. I'm surprised that you have been prescribed metformin as a replacement, as it works in a different way, and there are also alternative medications in the sulphonylurea class that could have been prescribed if there are problems getting glibenclamide. Metformin can take a week or two before any beneficial effect is seen, so if you have discontinued the glibenclamide and only just started the metformin then this is probably why your levels are not as good as you might hope. This may improve as the metformin becomes more 'established'. Have you never been prescribed metformin before? It's the commonest medication for Type 2 diabetes and is usually the first medication used. 

I would ask your GP about alternatives to glibenclamide that work the same way e.g. gliclazide


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## Copepod (Jul 13, 2016)

Welcome to the forum, Field Miller. I don't use glibenclamide, but if I did, I would ask pharmacist what other doses of glibenclamide are available. It sounds like the tablet is no longer manufactured. Assuming 2.5mg glibenclamide daily was giving you good blood glucose control, then perhaps 5mg is available and you could use a scorer to produce half tablets. 
If your change to metformin is very recent, it will take a while (a few weeks) for levels to build up in your body.


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## Field Miller (Jul 13, 2016)

Northerner said:


> Hi Field Miller, welcome to the forum  I haven't any personal experience of glibenclamide, but I see it is a member of the sulphonylurea types of medication. These meds stimulate your pancreas to produce more insulin. I'm surprised that you have been prescribed metformin as a replacement, as it works in a different way, and there are also alternative medications in the sulphonylurea class that could have been prescribed if there are problems getting glibenclamide. Metformin can take a week or two before any beneficial effect is seen, so if you have discontinued the glibenclamide and only just started the metformin then this is probably why your levels are not as good as you might hope. This may improve as the metformin becomes more 'established'. Have you never been prescribed metformin before? It's the commonest medication for Type 2 diabetes and is usually the first medication used.
> 
> I would ask your GP about alternatives to glibenclamide that work the same way e.g. gliclazide


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## Field Miller (Jul 13, 2016)

Hello Northerner, thank you for your welcome and I'm most grateful for your swift and helpful reply. The physician prescribed Glibenclamide back in 1995 and I've been taking it ever since. I suppose I need to be more patient and wait a little longer to see if Metformin has the required effect. Failing that I'll return to my GP and pursue Gliclazide as an alternative.

All good wishes.


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## Field Miller (Jul 13, 2016)

Copepod said:


> Welcome to the forum, Field Miller. I don't use glibenclamide, but if I did, I would ask pharmacist what other doses of glibenclamide are available. It sounds like the tablet is no longer manufactured. Assuming 2.5mg glibenclamide daily was giving you good blood glucose control, then perhaps 5mg is available and you could use a scorer to produce half tablets.
> If your change to metformin is very recent, it will take a while (a few weeks) for levels to build up in your body.


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## Field Miller (Jul 13, 2016)

Hello Copepod, thank you for your welcome and your rapid response. From my correspondence with Teva UK I've discovered that both 2.5mg and 5mg are no longer available. I'm going to be more patient and wait a little longer to see if Metformin has the required effect. 

Best wishes.


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## mikeyB (Jul 13, 2016)

I cannot find a shred of evidence that there is a difficulty in obtaining glibenclamide. It is still being manufactured, it is still for sale in the US, and Teva still list it as one of their generic products. In fact, there is a huge market for glibenclamide in Asia and South America, mainly supplied by manufacturers in India and China. The world is awash with the stuff. There is not a word about difficulty in supply anywhere I have looked, so I'm not able to discover a reason why you should be having this problem. There must be others on the forum who are taking glibenclamide, so it would be interesting to hear from them. And, (this may annoy you) I've just phoned my pals down at our surgery here on the sunny Isle of Mull, and glibenclamide 2.5mg is freely available. So I suspect the problem is to do with NHS England and its arcane contracts with suppliers.

I agree with Northerner, the switch to Meformin rather than another sulponylurea is odd, but wait and see how it goes.


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## trophywench (Jul 13, 2016)

Well I'm totally surprised that the doctor hasn't explained the subtleties about changing from a sulphonurea to Metformin, it being a totally different drug that works in a totally different way and has totally different effects, other than both their 'aims' being to reduce Blood Glucose.

Does this GP actually know anything about T2 diabetes?


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## Field Miller (Jul 13, 2016)

Hi Mikey, I must admit that I was totally puzzled when I discovered, in mid June, that Glibenclamide would no longer be available. I agree, it must be being taken by goodness knows how many people across the globe. What I'll have to do is tell the Missus that we're upping sticks and moving to sunny Mull. 

If there is anyone else on the forum who's experiencing the same problem I'd love to hear from them.


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## grovesy (Jul 13, 2016)

Sorry I had not heard of this drug till you posted this morning I and many others have been or on Gliclazide which is in the same family of drugs.


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## mikeyB (Jul 13, 2016)

I'm sure if anyone else was experiencing the same problem, it would have been reported by now. If you google "difficulty of availability of Glibenclamide" the only hit is this forum. 

I think you have been hard done by, and potentially to the detriment of your health. You might wish to ask your GP for an explanation of why a dispensing surgery in the wilds of Scotland can get Glibenclamide, and you can't. (And as has been suggested, try and bring the conversation round to why you weren't put on another sulponylurea rather than  Metformin ) . I think Jenny's question is a valid one.

Maybe now there is a diabetic Prime Minister, we could invite her to join the forum, and ask her why these problems arise...


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## Field Miller (Jul 13, 2016)

Mikey, once again I appreciate your comments. I'd be grateful if you'd do me a favour and ask your dispensing surgery whose Glibenclamide they stock. I assume it is Teva UK but if it's an alternative that helps me in my quest to source another supplier. Thanks in anticipation.


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## Field Miller (Jul 13, 2016)

Hi Jenny, it does make you wonder whether GPs are that familiar with ins and outs of diabetes. Thanks for your input.


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## trophywench (Jul 13, 2016)

Thing is - they HAVE to know the difference between a sulphonurea and Met for the simple reason that Metformin not being a hypoglcaemic agent, doesn't need you to test etc before driving and as all sulphonureas are hypoglycaemic agents, hence they need to prescribe the strips and give you a meter, when they put you on them - whereas with Met - most of the time you don't get any testing equipment.

I think there's been a cock up frankly and I think you should go back to the GP and ask the questions.  Is it a group practice, if so ring and ask if there's a GP designated as the one 'interested in diabetes' and try to see them instead.


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## mikeyB (Jul 13, 2016)

Field Miller said:


> Mikey, once again I appreciate your comments. I'd be grateful if you'd do me a favour and ask your dispensing surgery whose Glibenclamide they stock. I assume it is Teva UK but if it's an alternative that helps me in my quest to source another supplier. Thanks in anticipation.


They don't know whose glibenclamide they would get - they don't have any patients who take it, so they never have any in stock. But they could get some if, say, a tourist came in who was running out of medication. Not surprising really, as there are only about 600 patients in the practice. I'll have a dig around the depths of the Internet to see if I can root out the info out about glibenclamide suppliers in Scotland. (If I can't find anything, I'll ask the pharmacist in Tobermory when I travel to the metropolis for a haircut next Friday).


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## mikeyB (Jul 14, 2016)

It certainly is a murky world in the depths of the generic (off patent) medicines market. The main company that I can find that markets glibenclamide is Teva, but dig a little deeper, and their glibenclamide 2.5mg is sourced from a company called Almus, who do have a UK presence, and do market it separately. This may be the problem - a simple inter-company strop, and NHS contracts.

This isn't anything you or I could ever sort out, but it isn't worth the fight anyway. So I would suggest that when you next see the doctor you try to get yourself switched to  gliclazide, which works in exactly the same way as glibenclamide. You'll never have a problem with  gliclazide  because just about every generic company supplies it. 

Shame, really. This year is the 50th anniversary of glibenclamide being created.


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## Vicsetter (Jul 14, 2016)

It's still listed on the BNF in 2.5mg and 5mg pills, I would have expected if there are supply difficulties that you would be prescribed Gliclazide or Glimepiride.


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## Field Miller (Jul 14, 2016)

Evening Mike, thanks for delving around. I'd not come across Almus in my trawl of t'internet and it looks as though I'll have to concede that I'm not going to source a tangible alternative supplier of Glibenclamide. I'm going to take your advice, and that of others, and visit my GP and insist that I'm supplied with Glicazide. 

Having looked at the golf from Troon, you've evidently had cracking weather on Mull today. Once again, thanks for your interest and advice.


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## Field Miller (Jul 14, 2016)

Hi Vicsetter, I'm going to discuss this with my GP and insist that I'm supplied with Glicazide. Many thanks.


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## mikeyB (Jul 14, 2016)

Aye, it has been pleasant. Mull is great for weather, particularly if you like sideways rain!

Best of luck with the Gliclazide conversation with your GP, let us know how you get on.


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## Field Miller (Jul 26, 2016)

A big thank you to those of you who took time to respond to my post of 13th July, namely Northerner, Copepod, MikeyB, Trophywench, Grovesy and Vicsetter. Your advice lead to me go back to my GP and request Gliclazide. I'm now taking a 1 x 40mg tablet each day and, as a result, my blood sugar readings have reduced significantly and returned to similar levels I was getting with Glibenclamide. All good wishes, Alan.


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## Northerner (Jul 26, 2016)

Field Miller said:


> A big thank you to those of you who took time to respond to my post of 13th July, namely Northerner, Copepod, MikeyB, Trophywench, Grovesy and Vicsetter. Your advice lead to me go back to my GP and request Gliclazide. I'm now taking a 1 x 40mg tablet each day and, as a result, my blood sugar readings have reduced significantly and returned to similar levels I was getting with Glibenclamide. All good wishes, Alan.


Excellent news Alan!  Glad to hear things have been sorted out for you


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## Copepod (Jul 26, 2016)

Field Miller said:


> A big thank you to those of you who took time to respond to my post of 13th July, namely Northerner, Copepod, MikeyB, Trophywench, Grovesy and Vicsetter. Your advice lead to me go back to my GP and request Gliclazide. I'm now taking a 1 x 40mg tablet each day and, as a result, my blood sugar readings have reduced significantly and returned to similar levels I was getting with Glibenclamide. All good wishes, Alan.


Glad that combination of forum advice and a wise GP have sorted your problem, @Field Miller / Alan.


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## grovesy (Jul 26, 2016)

Glad to hear we could be of help!


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## Trevor Barnes (Nov 7, 2016)

Field Miller said:


> I've been a type 2 diabetic for some 21 years and throughout that time I've taken one Glibenclamide 2.5mg tablet each day.
> 
> I've discovered, having had trouble recently getting the medication from my local Boots Pharmacy, which manages my prescription, and having contacted Teva UK, that 'due to supply problems' the product has been discontinued.
> 
> ...


have just been informed i too cannot get glibenclamide,been a approx 5 days trying to get some


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## mikeyB (Nov 7, 2016)

Trevor Barnes said:


> have just been informed i too cannot get glibenclamide,been a approx 5 days trying to get some


Hi Trevor, welcome to the friendliest forum on the planet!

I think if you look through the posts, it's more trouble than it's worth trying to get some. Ask your surgery to switch you to Gliclazide. There shouldn't be a problem doing that.


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## Field Miller (Nov 8, 2016)

Hello Trevor, I wholeheartedly supports Mike's advice. Best wishes, Alan.


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