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Twitching In Arm With Low Sugar Level After Taking Lantus, Actos, Onglyza And Tricor. Worrisome
Question: THE LAST THREE DAYS MY WIFE HAS HAD READINGS IN THE 20'S AND 30'S AFTER A NIGHTS SLEEP
ACCOMPIED BY INVOLUNTARY LEFT ARM TWITCHING. SHE TAKES 40 UNITS LANTUS IN AM. 1 TABLET 45 MG ACTOS, I TABLET ONGLYZA 5 MG AND 1 TABLET TRICOR ALL TAKEN IN MORNING. HER LAST READING WAS 140. TAKEN ABOUT 20 MINUTES AGO. BUT I HAVE NOT GIVEN HER THE INSULIN SHOT BECAUSE I AM AFRAID IT WILL TAKE HER TOO LOW. I HAVE A CALL INTO HER DIABETIS DOCTOR AND HE HAS NOT GOT BACK TO US. ON SATURDAY MORNING WE HAD THE PARAMEDICS HERE. PLEASE I NEED SOME HELP AND IDEAS.
ACCOMPIED BY INVOLUNTARY LEFT ARM TWITCHING. SHE TAKES 40 UNITS LANTUS IN AM. 1 TABLET 45 MG ACTOS, I TABLET ONGLYZA 5 MG AND 1 TABLET TRICOR ALL TAKEN IN MORNING. HER LAST READING WAS 140. TAKEN ABOUT 20 MINUTES AGO. BUT I HAVE NOT GIVEN HER THE INSULIN SHOT BECAUSE I AM AFRAID IT WILL TAKE HER TOO LOW. I HAVE A CALL INTO HER DIABETIS DOCTOR AND HE HAS NOT GOT BACK TO US. ON SATURDAY MORNING WE HAD THE PARAMEDICS HERE. PLEASE I NEED SOME HELP AND IDEAS.
Hi there.
Thank you for the query.
Your wife had something called hypoglycemic seizures. Nothing to be worried about once she's out of hypoglycemia. Please reduce her dose of Inj Lantus by 6 to 8 units as she's going into low sugars, but do not stop the insulin otherwise the readings will go upto 300/400. The reduction in insulin doses can be done even before your Diabetologist calls you because it is the only way to prevent XXXXXXX repeatations of hypoglycemia.
She being 62 years old, you can decide to stop tab Actos as it disturbs absorption of sugar for a person suffering from hypoglycemia. Certainly your wife needs full review of her medications as all the medications she's taking in the morning hours to have full day's metabolic control. Hence the tendency to go into hypoglycemia.
Once you stop Tab Actos and reduce insulin doses, please start checking her fasting sugar, post meal sugars after breakfast, after lunch, and after dinner. Please let me know her height and weight. Let me know if she has family history of diabetes, kidney disease, heart disease. Also a latest reading of serum creatinine and serum sodium and serum potassium are essential. I can guide her fully depending on her lifestyle and medical history for good sugar control by avoiding hypoglycemia.
Let her continue onglyza and tricor as of now. How long she's been having diabetes?
Please furnish with this information.
Take care.
Thank you for the query.
Your wife had something called hypoglycemic seizures. Nothing to be worried about once she's out of hypoglycemia. Please reduce her dose of Inj Lantus by 6 to 8 units as she's going into low sugars, but do not stop the insulin otherwise the readings will go upto 300/400. The reduction in insulin doses can be done even before your Diabetologist calls you because it is the only way to prevent XXXXXXX repeatations of hypoglycemia.
She being 62 years old, you can decide to stop tab Actos as it disturbs absorption of sugar for a person suffering from hypoglycemia. Certainly your wife needs full review of her medications as all the medications she's taking in the morning hours to have full day's metabolic control. Hence the tendency to go into hypoglycemia.
Once you stop Tab Actos and reduce insulin doses, please start checking her fasting sugar, post meal sugars after breakfast, after lunch, and after dinner. Please let me know her height and weight. Let me know if she has family history of diabetes, kidney disease, heart disease. Also a latest reading of serum creatinine and serum sodium and serum potassium are essential. I can guide her fully depending on her lifestyle and medical history for good sugar control by avoiding hypoglycemia.
Let her continue onglyza and tricor as of now. How long she's been having diabetes?
Please furnish with this information.
Take care.
Note: For further follow-up, discuss your blood glucose reports with our diabetologist. Click here.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
Answered by
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