Differential effects of sodium bicarbonate and aluminium hydroxide on the absorption and activity of glipizide

Clinically significant drug interactions with antacids: an update

One may consider that drug-drug interactions (DDIs) associated with antacids is an obsolete topic because they are prescribed less frequently by medical professionals due to the advent of drugs that more effectively suppress gastric acidity (i.e. histamine H(2)-receptor antagonists [H2RAs] and proton pump inhibitors [PPIs]). Nevertheless, the use of antacids by ambulant patients may be ever increasing, because they are freely available as over-the-counter (OTC) drugs. Antacids consisting of weak basic substances coupled with polyvalent cations may alter the rate and/or the extent of absorption of concomitantly administered drugs via different mechanisms. Polyvalent cations in antacid formulations may form insoluble chelate complexes with drugs and substantially reduce their bioavailability. Clinical studies demonstrated that two classes of antibacterials (tetracyclines and fluoroquinolones) are susceptible to clinically relevant DDIs with antacids through this mechanism. Countermeasures against this type of DDI include spacing out the dosing interval - taking antacid either 4 hours before or 2 hours after administration of these antibacterials. Bisphosphonates may be susceptible to DDIs with antacids by the same mechanism, as described in the prescription information of most bisphosphonates, but no quantitative data about the DDIs are available. For drugs with solubility critically dependent on pH, neutralization of gastric fluid by antacids may alter the dissolution of these drugs and the rate and/or extent of their absorption. However, the magnitude of DDIs elicited by antacids through this mechanism is less than that produced by H2RAs or PPIs; therefore, the clinical relevance of such DDIs is often obscure. Magnesium ions contained in some antacid formulas may increase gastric emptying, thereby accelerating the rate of absorption of some drugs. However, the clinical relevance of this is unclear in most cases because the difference in plasma drug concentration observed after dosing shortly disappears. Recent reports have indicated that some of the molecular-targeting agents such as the tyrosine kinase inhibitors dasatinib and imatinib, and the thrombopoietin receptor agonist eltrombopag may be susceptible to DDIs with antacids. Finally, the recent trend of developing OTC drugs as combination formulations of an antacid and an H2RA is a concern because these drugs will increase the risk of DDIs by dual mechanisms, i.e. a gastric pH-dependent mechanism by H2RAs and a cation-mediated chelation mechanism by antacids.

Pharmacokinetic drug interactions with anti-ulcer drugs

The safety profile of any pharmacological agent is defined on the basis of its toxicity, tolerability and potential for pharmacokinetic and/or pharmacodynamic interactions with other compounds, which may belong to the same or to a different pharmacological class. Drug-drug interactions are important in clinical practice because short and long term therapeutic regimens frequently require coadministration of different drugs. The pharmacological treatment of gastric and duodenal ulcers (and of related syndromes) includes older and newer compounds, which have different mechanisms of action and exert different therapeutic effects. These compounds are widely prescribed in combination with other drugs being given for the treatment of concomitant diseases. This article reviews pharmacokinetic interactions with anti-ulcer drugs, paying particular attention to those which have clinically relevant adverse effects. Drugs mentioned in the literature as causing any pharmacokinetic interaction with anti-ulcer compounds are considered in this article.

Effects of Sho-saiko-to on the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of tolbutamide in rats

Although Sho-saiko-to (Xiao Chai Hu Tang), a major Chinese traditional medicine, is frequently prescribed with other synthetic or biotechnological drugs for the treatment of various chronic diseases, there is a dearth of information about interactions between sho-saiko-to and co-administered drugs. This paper reports the effects of Sho-saiko-to on the pharmacokinetics and glucose responses of a sulphonylurea hypoglycaemic agent, tolbutamide, after their oral administration in rats. After oral administration of tolbutamide (50 mg kg(-1)) with or without Sho-saiko-to extract powder (300 mg kg(-1)) to male Sprague-Dawley rats cannulated in the jugular vein, plasma tolbutamide and glucose levels were periodically measured. Co-administration of Sho-saiko-to tended to elevate the plasma tolbutamide concentration in the absorption phase. A two-compartment lag-time model was found to describe the plasma tolbutamide concentration-time data. The maximum concentration of tolbutamide was significantly increased and time to reach the maximum concentration was reduced to about 70% by co-administration with Sho-saiko-to. There was no significant change in area under the curve or in the elimination half-life of tolbutamide. The extent of the lowering effect of tolbutamide on plasma glucose levels was increased up to 0.75 h and decreased after 5 h after co-administration of Sho-saiko-to. In conclusion, these studies suggest that sho-saiko-to slightly hastens the gastrointestinal absorption of tolbutamide. Furthermore, it is considered that elevation of the gastrointestinal absorption rate by Sho-saiko-to might potentiate the hypoglycaemic effect of this sulphonylurea in the early period after oral administration.

The effect of pH on the in-vitro dissolution of three second-generation sulphonylurea preparations: mechanism of antacid-sulphonylurea interaction

Simultaneously administered magnesium hydroxide or sodium bicarbonate can increase the rate and extent of absorption of non-micronized glibenclamide and glipizide. To clarify the mechanism of this interaction we have studied the effect of pH on the dissolution of two different formulations of glibenclamide (micronized and non-micronized) and one formulation of glipizide. One tablet of each sulphonylurea preparation was placed in a dissolution chamber containing continuously mixed dissolution medium at pH 2, pH 6 or pH 9; 5 mL of the medium was replaced every 2 min. The amount of glibenclamide dissolved from the non-micronized formulation within 2 h, was 1.2, 4.5 and 76% at pH 2, pH 6 and pH 9, respectively (P < 0.01), whereas 21, 29 and 100% was dissolved from the micronized formulation (P < 0.01). The amount of glipizide dissolved within 2 h at pH 2, pH 6 and pH 9 was 3.9, 24 and 92%, respectively (P < 0.01). We conclude that the elevated pH of the gastric contents is the most likely explanation for the interactions previously demonstrated between antacids and sulphonylureas after their concomitant ingestion.

Enhancement of drug absorption by antacids. An unrecognised drug interaction

Antacids are widely used for many disorders. The potential of antacids to interact with other concomitantly ingested drugs is well recognised. These interactions usually result in reduced or delayed absorption of the affected drug. However, this is not always the case. In contrast to aluminium hydroxide, magnesium hydroxide and sodium bicarbonate can enhance the absorption of some drugs. For example, magnesium hydroxide can increase the rate and sometimes even the extent of absorption of certain nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (e.g. tolfenamic acid, mefenamic acid and ibuprofen), sulphonylurea antidiabetic agents [e.g. glipizide, glibenclamide (glyburide) and tolbutamide] and the oral anticoagulant dicoumarol (bishydroxycoumarin). These weakly acidic drugs are nonionised at gastric pH, but are sparingly water soluble. Elevation of the gastric pH by administration of magnesium hydroxide or sodium bicarbonate increases the solubility and absorption of such sparingly water soluble agents. Chelate formation may be involved in the increased absorption of dicoumarol by magnesium hydroxide. In combination antacids containing both aluminium hydroxide and magnesium hydroxide, the absorption enhancing effect of magnesium hydroxide seems to be counterbalanced by the opposing effects of aluminium hydroxide. The clinical significance of increased drug absorption is not clear. However, accelerated and enhanced absorption of analgesic drugs may be beneficial when rapid pain relief is desired. In contrast, an unexpectedly increased hypoglycaemic or anticoagulant effect may be potentially dangerous. Therefore, a knowledge of the potential effect of antacids on the absorption of other drugs is clinically important.

Potentiation of the hypoglycaemic response to glipizide in diabetic patients by histamine H2-receptor antagonists

In a randomised placebo controlled study, two groups of six maturity onset diabetic patients stabilised on glipizide were given cimetidine (400 mg) or ranitidine (150 mg) 3 h before a standardised meal. In comparison with placebo, both cimetidine and ranitidine significantly reduced the post-prandial rise in blood glucose by a mean of 40% and 25% respectively producing glucose levels of less than 3 mmol l-1 (lowest 1.5 mmol l-1) in four patients. Both drugs also significantly increased plasma glipizide AUC by approximately 20%. Caution should be exercised when initiating treatment with H2-receptor antagonists in diabetics receiving sulphonylurea hypoglycaemic agents.

The effects of magnesium hydroxide on the absorption and efficacy of two glibenclamide preparations

1. The effect of magnesium hydroxide on the absorption and efficacy of two glibenclamide preparations was investigated in healthy volunteers in two separate studies, using a randomized cross-over design with two phases. 2. A single dose of magnesium hydroxide (850 mg) or water only (150 ml) was given immediately after the ingestion of a micronised (1.75 mg, seven subjects) or a non-micronised (2.5 mg, six subjects) preparation of glibenclamide. Plasma concentrations of glibenclamide, insulin and glucose were measured. 3. Magnesium hydroxide accelerated (P less than 0.05) the absorption of glibenclamide from the micronised preparation to a small extent but the extent of absorption and the insulin and glucose responses were unaltered. 4. Coadministration of magnesium hydroxide with the non-micronised glibenclamide preparation increased the area under the plasma glibenclamide concentration-time curve from 0 to 3 h, five-fold (P less than 0.05), the total area three-fold (P less than 0.05) and the peak drug concentration three-fold (P less than 0.05). The incremental insulin area from 0 to 3 h was increased 35-fold (P less than 0.05) and the maximum insulin response 10-fold (P less than 0.05) by magnesium hydroxide. 5. Concomitant ingestion of magnesium hydroxide and non-micronised glibenclamide may greatly enhance the absorption and efficacy of glibenclamide. The absorption of micronised glibenclamide appears to be only slightly influenced by magnesium hydroxide.