Q: I am a 61 years old diabetic woman taking Wosulin R and N 10 units each daily along with Metformin 500 mg, Glimepiride 1 mg, Pio 20 mg. Now my blood sugar levels are under control. Is this treatment sufficient? Can I continue taking these medicines for long periods?

A:Wosulin is kind of insulin which will not affect the creatinine level. You can take insulin both the times and stop Pio and Glimiprde. If you do not want injections twice, then we need to take care of the long-term time side effects of Pio and Gilmipride. Along with this, you must keep a check on tests like HbA1c, liver function, kidney function, lipids, etc. to rule out diabetic complications. If sugars are well controlled, then definitely you can continue with the same therapy for a long time.

Metformin 500 mg twice a day can also be taken, which is safe for the kidney. This can be taken as long as creatinine is less than 1.5 mg/dl. Metformin does directly damage kidney and should be avoided once creatinine level has gone up.