Fungal Infection from Taking Dapagliflozin

[Suki1968]

Have been taking Dapagliflozin for 8 months now have a bad fungal infection which is not clearing up been on antfungal medication 6 weeks with no improvement any one else suffered this ?

 

[Antje77]

Have been taking Dapagliflozin for 8 months now have a bad fungal infection which is not clearing up been on antfungal medication 6 weeks with no improvement any one else suffered this ?

I have never used a flozin, but flozins make you pee out sugar, creating the perfect dark, moist, warm, and sweet environment for thrush, especially in the genital area. It's a very common side effect.

 

[Suki1968]

I have never used a flozin, but flozins make you pee out sugar, creating the perfect dark, moist, warm, and sweet environment for thrush, especially in the genital area. It's a very common side effect.

Yes it does and sugar levels were fine but fungal infection is very debilitating and showing no signs of getting better this is the 3rd medication I am on now had blood test to check liver function which thankfully is fine.

 

[Antje77]

fungal infection is very debilitating

I know!
I had recurring thrush for almost two years before my diabetes diagnosis, and it's horrible!

The more glucose is in your system, the more you will pee out. What type of diet do you follow?
All carbs turn to glucose in the body, so maybe it would help to reduce the carbs in your diet.

 

[Rosie9876]

Have been taking Dapagliflozin for 8 months now have a bad fungal infection which is not clearing up been on antfungal medication 6 weeks with no improvement any one else suffered this ?

I've been taking Dapagliflozin for 11 months, and for the past 3 months, I've had awful burning when I pee. I've repeatedly tested negative for a UTI, nevertheless as a precaution given antibiotics, which haven't worked. I don't have the other symptoms of thrush. I have uric acid kidney stones, but this isn't designated a side effect. I have no idea what it is, nor apparently does GP. I didn't think of connecting it to the Dapagliflozin until recently. It's also making me constipated, despite a hydrated, high fibre diet, which I flagged with practice pharmacist, but no response.

 

[ElenaP]

I've been taking Dapagliflozin for 11 months, and for the past 3 months, I've had awful burning when I pee. I've repeatedly tested negative for a UTI, nevertheless as a precaution given antibiotics, which haven't worked. I don't have the other symptoms of thrush. I have uric acid kidney stones, but this isn't designated a side effect. I have no idea what it is, nor apparently does GP. I didn't think of connecting it to the Dapagliflozin until recently. It's also making me constipated, despite a hydrated, high fibre diet, which I flagged with practice pharmacist, but no response.

Has your GP surgery sent your urine sample to an external laboratory for analysis?
Sometimes UTIs need specific antibiotics.

A few months ago I had a bad urine infection. The GP surgery did a urine dip-test and then insisted that I was mistaken. Several days later I managed to speak to a locum GP (after crying on the phone when the receptionist refused to put me through to anyone, not even a nurse). Then the locum GP sent a sample to an external laboratory. When the results came back, I was prescribed a different antibiotics that worked.

You may need an antibiotic that targets that specific problem.

 

[Rosie9876]

Thanks @ElenaP. Yes it was sent for lab analysis. Twice. It's great that yours got sorted because you persisted. Sad that receptionists sometimes wrongly filter out contact with a doctor.

BTW, @Antje77 I get that Dapagliflozin filters out sugar through the urine, creating an environment ripe for infection. In this sense maybe it isn't the miracle drug it's touted to be.

I am on a low carb regime with an A1c of 6.6%. I didn't have this problem all the time my diabetes was uncontrolled and haven't had a UTI for years. Three months is a long time for that pain, as anyone who has had a UTI will appreciate.

 

[Taighnamona]

Thanks @ElenaP. Yes it was sent for lab analysis. Twice. It's great that yours got sorted because you persisted. Sad that receptionists sometimes wrongly filter out contact with a doctor.

BTW, @Antje77 I get that Dapagliflozin filters out sugar through the urine, creating an environment ripe for infection. In this sense maybe it isn't the miracle drug it's touted to be.

I am on a low carb regime with an A1c of 6.6%. I didn't have this problem all the time my diabetes was uncontrolled and haven't had a UTI for years. Three months is a long time for that pain, as anyone who has had a UTI will appreciate.

My sympathies. I was on it years ago when my sugars were quite high and developed similar symptoms but to the point I became quite raw and even walking was difficult.
Clinic solution was to offer an oestrogen cream as I was post menopause! I stopped taking the meds and demanded a different kind of med. over the years they’ve asked me to try again and although my sugars are very low now I’ve refused.
I’m not sure if this effect is more of a problem for older women. Best wishes.

 

[Rosie9876]

My sympathies. I was on it years ago when my sugars were quite high and developed similar symptoms but to the point I became quite raw and even walking was difficult.
Clinic solution was to offer an oestrogen cream as I was post menopause! I stopped taking the meds and demanded a different kind of med. over the years they’ve asked me to try again and although my sugars are very low now I’ve refused.
I’m not sure if this effect is more of a problem for older women. Best wishes.

Are you saying that you developed symptoms similar to mine while taking Dapagliflozin? That is, burning when peeing, although no infection detected, and yes it feels quite raw. But your sugars were quite high. Mine, with an A1c of 49, are nearly at the pre-diabetes level. It began to come down when I adopted a low carb diet 9 months ago, not earlier, when I started with the Dapagliflozin on top of Metformin. If it's not JUST me with these symptoms, there seems to be something contra-indicated. I am desperate to sort this out. I am on the same medication as I was when my A1c was 88. Plus I can no longer be described as hypertensive, but it stubbornly remains on my record. A supposed review of medication with the surgery's pharmacist went nowhere. I don't want to go off the Dapa without their agreement. I don't know what to do.

 

[Taighnamona]

Think thrush is a well known side effect of any of the ‘flozin’ meds simply because it encourages you to excrete excess sugar in urine and a warm moist groin is ideal conditions for fungal growth.
It would be interesting to find out how many people are affected.

 

[Rosie9876]

I agree, it would be interesting to know how many people are affected. But I don't have the discharge associated with thrush, or the itching. And wouldn't my doctor have explored this? Mind you, I've never had thrush, as far as I know.

 

[Taighnamona]

My symptoms have disappeared now that my glucose is at non diabetic levels (3A1c’s at 41,39 and 38) and I’ve maintained that for nearly two years on a low carb diet. The highest I’ve ever been was 67 so not hugely high glucose numbers.
I suspect medics balance the effectiveness of removing excess sugar using flozin drugs against the likelihood of symptoms such as thrush.
My symptoms were severe and debilitating enough that I couldn’t walk without pain…possibly an extreme reaction and maybe not typical. I found the doctor to be unsympathetic expecting I should just put up with the discomfort and it took quite a bit of insisting before they agreed to a different treatment. Unfortunately I think this attitude is typical of some medics expecting women to put up with stuff rather than listening to them and working with them.
Best wishes going forward.