Patient/caregiver was educated on contraindications for Rosiglitazone use as follows:
- Menopausal women: Rosiglitazone use can result in increased resorption of the existing bone framework and decreased new bone formation. This can result in increased risk for bone pain & tenderness, pathological fractures. Female sex hormone, estrogen, is essential to female bone health because it promotes the activity of cells that contribute to continuous new bone formation. Secondary to reduction/lack of estrogen secretion, menopausal women are naturally at increased risk for poor new bone formation and osteoporosis with thin and weakened bones. Rosiglitazone use in menopausal women could result in accelerated progression of osteoporosis and so, could be avoided for a safer alternative.
- Heart failure: Heart failure is a condition when the heart muscle goes weak and is unable to pump blood efficiently. Individuals with heart failure present with reduced blood supply to many vital organs in the body, thus compromising their function. Use of rosiglitazone can contribute to significant fluid retention in the body. Retained fluid can increase the blood volume and add extra load on the failing heart in individuals with congestive heart failure and can lead to worsening of heart failure symptoms and cardiac function. This can profoundly reduce blood supply to many vital organs in the body, thus grossly compromising their function. Patients can present with increasing edema, sharp weight gain from retained fluid, progressively increasing shortness of breath, compromised endurance, and worsening fatigue.
