Actos

Generic Name: Pioglitazone
Brand Name: Actos

Actos is used for:

Treating type 2 diabetes in certain patients. It is used along with diet and exercise. It may be used alone or with other antidiabetic medicines.

Actos is a thiazolidinedione antidiabetic. It works by lowering blood sugar by making the cells of the body more sensitive to the action of insulin.

Do NOT use Actos if:

• you are allergic to any ingredient in Actos
• you have moderate to severe heart failure
• you have type 1 diabetes
• you have a history of liver problems, including jaundice (yellowing of the skin or eyes), during therapy with a similar medicine called troglitazone

Contact your doctor or health care provider right away if any of these apply to you.

Before using Actos :

Some medical conditions may interact with Actos . Tell your doctor or pharmacist if you have any medical conditions, especially if any of the following apply to you:

• if you are pregnant, planning to become pregnant, or are breast-feeding
• if you are taking any prescription or nonprescription medicine, herbal preparation, or dietary supplement
• if you have allergies to medicines, foods, or other substances
• if you have diabetic ketoacidosis (a severe problem associated with diabetes)
• if you have a history of liver problems, abnormal liver function tests, heart problems (eg, congestive heart failure [CHF]), or eye or vision problems
• if you have swelling problems (edema)

Some MEDICINES MAY INTERACT with Actos . Tell your health care provider if you are taking any other medicines, especially any of the following:

• Gemfibrozil, insulin, or oral antidiabetic medicines (eg, glipizide) because the risk of low blood sugar may be increased
• Rifampin because it may decrease Actos 's effectiveness, resulting in high blood sugar
• Anticoagulants (eg, warfarin) because the risk of their side effects may be increased or their effectiveness may be decreased by Actos

This may not be a complete list of all interactions that may occur. Ask your health care provider if Actos may interact with other medicines that you take. Check with your health care provider before you start, stop, or change the dose of any medicine.