Objective
To examine initiation and prescribing patterns of metformin-glibenclamide and metformin-rosiglitazone fixed dose combination products within the Australian veteran population.
Discussion
A minority of veterans started taking the combination products after being stabilised on the individual products; many had no prior history of oral hypoglycaemic use. This prescribing may lead to wastage if combination medications are poorly tolerated or, more importantly, may cause adverse events.
Results
Of metformin-glibenclamide initiations, 9% involved a switch from metformin and glibenclamide as separate products, while 22% had used neither metformin nor a sulfonylurea. Thirty percent of metformin-rosiglitazone initiations involved a switch from both individual products, while in 10% neither metformin nor thiazolidinedione had been dispensed.
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