Ask An Expert: Byetta

Content provided by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School

Ask An Expert: Byetta

Question:

Can you give me information on the new medication called Byetta? I have been prescribed this medication and I am worried because it is a new class of drug. I have had good success with it so far but would like to know if there have been any major problems reported.

Answer:

Byetta is the brand name for an injectable medicine, exenatide. This drug can be used to control blood sugar in diabetes. It can also promote weight loss, although it has not been formally tested in people without diabetes and does not have Food and Drug Administration approval to be used purely as a weight-loss drug.

The drug works by slowing down how quickly your stomach empties itself after a meal, and it also causes your pancreas to release insulin into the bloodstream. Because it makes your stomach slow to empty, it causes you to feel full more quickly as you eat, so it discourages overeating.

This medicine has been on the market for less than a full year. During this time, we have become aware of potential side effects that occur in some people. Of course, since the medicine is so new, we still do not know whether there are problems that could result from long-term use.

Side effects can include very powerful nausea in some patients, with or without vomiting. Some people have a side effect of diarrhea. If Byetta works too well in a person with diabetes, it can cause blood sugar to drop to dangerously low levels (hypoglycemia). This is particularly a concern for people who are taking both this drug and a medicine from the sulfonylurea diabetes medicine group, such as glyburide or glipizide.

Because it changes the speed of your digestion, Byetta can change the amount (dose) that your body absorbs of certain medicines, such as birth control pills and antibiotics. Byetta has caused birth defects when it has been tested in animals, so it is not safe to use in pregnancy.

Mary Pickett, M.D., is a lecturer for Harvard Medical School and an assistant professor of medicine at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, OR. At OHSU, she practices general internal medicine and teaches medical residents and students.

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Last updated:	January 24, 2007

Medical content reviewed by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School. Harvard Health Publications, Copyright © 2007 by President and Fellows of Harvard College. All rights reserved. Used with permission of StayWell.

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