Generic name: dapagliflozin [DAP-a-gli-FLOE-zin]
Drug Class: SGLT-2 inhibitors are a type of drug.
What is Farxiga?
Farxiga is a diabetes medicine that can be taken by mouth and helps keep blood sugar levels in check. Dapagliflozin works by making it easier for the kidneys to get rid of glucose from the blood.
Farxiga is used with a healthy diet and exercise to help people with type 2 diabetes mellitus better control their blood sugar. This medicine is not used to treat diabetes type 1.
Farxiga is also used to lower the chance that an adult with type 2 diabetes and heart disease will die from a heart attack, stroke, or heart failure.
Farxiga is also used to lower the chance that an adult with type 2 diabetes and heart disease will need to go to the hospital for heart failure.
Farxiga is also given to people with chronic kidney disease to lower the chance that their condition will get worse, that they will die from heart disease, or that they will have to go to the hospital for heart failure.
Warnings
If you have diabetic ketoacidosis, serious kidney disease, or are on dialysis, you shouldn’t use Farxiga.
Tell your doctor if you have diarrhea or vomiting, or if you aren’t eating or drinking as much as normal.
Taking Farxiga can make you lose water, which can make you feel weak or dizzy, especially when you stand up.
Farxiga can lead to dangerous infections in the penis or vagina. Get medical help right away if your genital or rectal area is burning, itching, smelly, bleeding, sore, painful, red, or swollen, or if you have a fever or don’t feel well.
Some people who took this drug got bladder cancer, but it’s not clear if dapagliflozin was really the cause.
Before you take this drug
Farxiga shouldn’t be used if you are allergic to dapagliflozin or if you have:
- Serious kidney disease (or are on dialysis) or
- Diabetic ketoacidosis (call your doctor for treatment).
To make sure Farxiga is safe for you, tell your doctor if you have ever had:
- Polycystic kidney disease;
- Liver disease;
- Bladder infections or other urination problems;
- Problems with your pancreas, including surgery;
- Alcoholism or if you drink a lot of alcohol now; or
- If you are on a low-salt diet.
If you are pregnant or think you might be pregnant, follow your doctor’s advice about how to use Farxiga. During pregnancy, it is very important to keep diabetes under control.
If you are in your second or third stage of pregnancy, you shouldn’t take dapagliflozin.
Dapagliflozin should not be used during the second or third trimester of pregnancy.
How should I take Farxiga?
Take Farxiga exactly as your doctor has told you to. Follow all of the rules on the label of your prescription, and read any guides or instruction sheets that come with it. Your doctor may change your dose from time to time.
Farxiga can be taken with or without food.
You will need to check your blood sugar often, and you may also need to check how many ketones are in your pee. Ketoacidosis, which is too much acid in the blood, can kill you if you take Dapagliflozin. Even if your blood sugar is fine, if a pee test shows that you have a lot of ketones in your urine, you should talk to your doctor.
Stress, illness, surgery, exercise, drinking booze, and skipping meals can all have an effect on blood sugar.
Hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, can make you feel very hungry, sick, angry, or shaky. Eat or drink hard candy, crackers, raisins, fruit juice, or regular soda to treat hypoglycemia fast. In the case of extreme hypoglycemia, your doctor may give you a glucagon injection.
Getting sick for a long time can make you lose water. If you have diarrhea or vomiting, or if you eat or drink less than normal, you should call your doctor.
Some medical tests may not be accurate if you take this medicine. Tell any doctor who sees you that you are taking Farxiga.
Your treatment may also include what you eat, how much you move, how you control your weight, and special medical care.
Keep at room temperature and away from heat and moisture.
How much Farxiga to take
Normal dose for adults with Type 2 diabetes:
To improve glucose control:
Initial dose: 5 mg orally once a day. If smaller dose is well tolerated, may increase to 10 mg orally once a day for more control of blood sugar.
Maximum dose: 10 mg/day
To lower the chance of going to the hospital for heart failure: 10 mg taken by mouth once a day
Comments:
-Fix the loss of volume before starting treatment.
-Make sure you have good kidney function (eGFR of more than 45 mL/min/1.73 m2) because good kidney function is needed for glycemic effectiveness.
-If used with insulin or an insulin secretagogue, insulin or the insulin secretagogue should be given in a smaller amount to lower the risk of low blood sugar.
Uses: -Along with food and exercise to help people with type 2 diabetes control their blood sugar.
-To lower the chance that a person with type 2 diabetes and heart disease or multiple heart disease risk factors will have to go to the hospital for heart failure.
Adults usually take 10 mg by mouth once a day for heart failure with a low ejection fraction.
Comments:
-Fix volume loss before starting treatment. -People with type 1 diabetes mellitus should not take this drug.
Use: To lower the chance of cardiovascular death and hospitalization for heart failure in adults with heart failure (NYHA class II-IV) and a lower ejection fraction.
The usual dose for adults with chronic kidney disease is:
10 mg taken by mouth once a day
Comments:
-Fix volume depletion before starting treatment.
-This drug is not suggested for people who have polycystic kidney disease or who need or have recently had immunosuppressive therapy for kidney disease, because it is not likely to work.
-People with type 1 diabetes mellitus should not take this drug.
Use: To lower the chance of sustained eGFR decline, end-stage kidney disease, cardiovascular death, and hospitalization for heart failure in adults with chronic kidney disease that is likely to get worse.
What will happen if I don’t take a dose?
Take the medicine as soon as you can, but skip the dose you missed if your next dose is almost due. Take only one amount at a time.
What happens if I overdose?
Get help from a doctor right away or call 1-800-222-1222 to reach the Poison Help line.
What should I stay away from while I’m on Farxiga?
Avoid drinking alcohol.
If you get up too quickly after sitting or lying down, you might feel dizzy.
Farxiga side effects
If you are allergic to Farxiga and have hives, trouble breathing, or swelling of your face, lips, tongue, or throat, call 911 right away.
See a doctor right away if you have any of the following symptoms of a genital (penis or vaginal) infection: burning, itching, odor, discharge, pain, soreness, redness, or swelling of the genital or rectal area, fever, feeling sick, or feeling like you have a sore throat. These signs could quickly get worse.
Call your doctor right away if:
- Dehydration symptoms include dizziness, disorientation, extreme thirst, and decreased urine.
- Kidney disorders include little or no urination, swelling in your feet or ankles, fatigue, and shortness of breath.
- Ketoacidosis (too much acid in the blood): nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, confusion, unusual drowsiness, or trouble breathing.
- Signs of a bladder infection: pain or burning when you urinate, more urine, blood in your urine, fever, pain in your pelvis or back.
Some side effects may happen more often in people over the age of 65.
Some common side effects of Farxiga include
- yeast infection in the genital area,
- having to go to the bathroom more than normal, or
- having a sore throat and a runny or stuffy nose.
This isn’t a full list of all possible side effects, and there may be others. You should talk to your doctor about any side effects. You can call 1-800-FDA-1088 to tell the FDA about side affects.
Farxiga side effects (more information)
How will other medicines change Farxiga?
Other medicines may make Farxiga work better or worse at dropping your blood sugar. Tell your doctor about any new or old medicines you start or stop taking, especially insulin or other oral diabetes medicines, a diuretic (also called a “water pill”), or lithium.
This list doesn’t have everything. Other drugs, like prescription and over-the-counter medicines, vitamins, and herbal items, may interact with dapagliflozin. Not every drug combination that could happen is on this list.
For more details,
Remember to keep this and all other medicines out of reach of children, to never give your medicines to other people, and to only use Farxiga for what it was given for.
Talk to your doctor or other healthcare source to make sure that the information on this page applies to your situation.
Disclaimer for Medical Use Copyright 1996–2023 Cerner Multum, Inc. Version: 10.02.
