Patients with diabetes are reporting a range of serious or permanent Invokamet side effects, including an increased risk of diabetic amputation.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning in May 2015 and again in 2017 about the increased risk of certain serious side effects associated with a variety of type-2 diabetes medications, including Invokamet. Complications linked with the diabetes drug include diabetic amputation, ketoacidosis, and kidney failure.

What is Invokamet?

Invokamet is a kind of medication known as a sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, a class of drugs that are used to treat type-2 diabetes.

Invokamet (also known by its generic name, canagliflozin metformin). In order to treat type-2 diabetes, Invokamet uses two drugs in combination to lower a patient’s blood sugar. The canagliflozin component of the drug helps the kidneys rid the bloodstream of glucose, and the metformin component works to lower the production of glucose in the liver.

SGLT2 inhibitors like Invokamet are popular option for diabetes treatment. However, despite the widespread usage of these drugs, more and more patients are coming forward with reports of Invokamet side effects.

Invokamet Side Effects

Of course, any medication is expected to bring with it the risk of certain mild side effects. But many of the Invokamet side effects being reported are far more serious in nature.

The FDA has received reports of 20 cases of diabetic ketoacidosis, ketoacidosis, and ketosis were found in patients treated with these SGLT2 inhibitors in around a one-year period from March 2013 to June 2014. The conditions were serious enough that the patients were either hospitalized or treated in the emergency room.

Mild Invokamet side effects include difficulty breathing, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, confusion, and fatigue. More serious Invokamet side effects include serious allergic reactions, kidney problems, kidney failure, and diabetic amputation.

Studies show that patients on Invokamet and similar medications are twice as likely to have to undergo lower limb diabetic amputation than patients taking a placebo. In some cases, patients had more than one lower limb amputation.

The FDA issued a safety announcement in May 2017, warning patients taking Invokamet of the serious risks associated with the drug

“Patients taking canagliflozin should notify your health care professionals right away if you develop new pain or tenderness, sores or ulcers, or infections in your legs or feet,” the FDA says. “Talk to your health care professional if you have questions or concerns. Do not stop taking your diabetes medicine without first talking to your health care professional.”

Filing a Lawsuit Over Invokamet Side Effects

Lawsuits allege that the manufacturer either knew or should have known about the risk of these serious Invokamet side effects like diabetic amputation, yet failed to adequately warn the public and the medical community.

If you or someone you love has suffered from Invokamet side effects like diabetic amputation after taking Invokamet or a similar SGLT2 inhibitor, you may have cause for filing a lawsuit. Though filing a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by Invokamet side effects, it may help alleviate the financial burden caused by bills and lost wages.