Dear Dr. Roach: I have been taking metformin for many years. Recently, the prescription bottle has been advising that I carry or wear a notification stating I am taking this medication. What is the concern, specifically for metformin?
D.S.
It’s more about your having diabetes than a concern about metformin.
(Nearly everyone on metformin takes it for diabetes or to prevent diabetes. A few people use it for weight loss.)
If a first responder finds that you are unable to communicate and you have a medical ID noting that you have diabetes and are on medication, they will rapidly try to give you intravenous sugar.
Metformin itself doesn’t particularly increase the risk of low blood sugar the way that insulin and some other oral agents for diabetes do.
But dangerously low blood sugar is easy treatable, and the consequences of not treating it are so awful that it’s helpful for a first responder to know when the possibility is more likely. Metformin can lower sugar in combination with other diabetes drugs.
A rare side-effect of metformin is lactic acidosis. This happens only in overdoses or in people with severe kidney disease (who shouldn’t be prescribed metformin).
Again, having immediate knowledge of this medication could help emergency responders make a diagnosis for proper treatment.
There are many other conditions where a medical alert ID could potentially help. Although specific jewelry is a traditional way to provide this information, most smartphones have the ability to store critical medical information in such a way that it can be accessed in an emergency without your passcode. I recommend that everybody does this.
People with critical medical conditions should also wear jewelry.
Dr. Roach regrets that he is unable to answer individual letters, but will incorporate them in the column whenever possible. Readers may email questions to [email protected] or send mail to 628 Virginia Dr., Orlando, Florida 32803.
