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The following information comes from DailyMed, and FDA label information provider.

Adverse Reactions

The following adverse reactions are discussed elsewhere:

  • Hypoglycemia [see Warnings and Precautions (5.3)].
  • Hypersensitivity and allergic reactions [see Warnings and Precautions (5.5)].
  • Hypokalemia [see Warnings and Precautions (5.6)].

6.1 Clinical Trial Experience

Because clinical trials are conducted under widely varying conditions, adverse reaction rates observed in the clinical trials of a drug cannot be directly compared to rates in the clinical trials of another drug and may not reflect the rates observed in practice.

Two clinical trials with BASAGLAR were conducted: one in type 1 diabetes and one in type 2 diabetes.

The type 1 diabetes population had the following characteristics: Mean age was 41 years and mean duration of diabetes was 16 years. 58% were male. 75% were Caucasian, 2% Black or African American and 4% American Indian or Alaskan native. 4% were Hispanic. At baseline, mean eGFR was 109 mL/min/1.73m2. 73.5 percent of patients had eGFR>90 mL/min/1.73m2. The mean BMI was approximately 26 kg/m2. HbA1c at baseline was 7.8%. The data in TABLE 1 reflect exposure of 268 patients to Basaglar with a mean exposure duration of 49 weeks.

The type 2 diabetes population had the following characteristics: Mean age was 59 years and mean duration of diabetes was 11 years. 50% were male. 78% were Caucasian, 8% Black or African American and 5% American Indian or Alaskan native. 28% were Hispanic. At baseline, mean eGFR was 109 mL/min/1.73m2. 67.5 percent of patients had eGFR>90 mL/min/1.73m2. The mean BMI was approximately 32 kg/m2. HbA1c at baseline was 8.3%. The data in TABLE 2 reflect exposure of 376 patients to BASAGLAR with a mean exposure duration of 22 weeks.

Common adverse reactions were defined as reactions occurring in ≥5% of the population studied. Common adverse reactions during clinical trials in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus and type 2 diabetes mellitus (other than hypoglycemia) are listed in TABLE 1 and TABLE 2, respectively.

BASAGLAR + Insulin Lispro, %
(n=268)
Infectiona24
Nasopharyngitis16
Upper respiratory tract infection8
a Infections other than nasopharyngitis or upper respiratory tract infection.
BASAGLAR + Oral Antidiabetic Medication, %
(n=376)
Infectiona17
Nasopharyngitis6
Upper respiratory tract infection5
a Infections other than nasopharyngitis or upper respiratory tract infection.

The frequencies of adverse reactions during a clinical trial of 5 years duration with another insulin glargine product, 100 units/mL, in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus are listed in TABLE 3.

Another Insulin Glargine Product, %
(n=514)
NPH, %
(n=503)
Hypertension2019
Sinusitis1918
Cataract1816
Bronchitis1514
Back pain1312
Cough127
Urinary tract infection1110
Diarrhea1110
Depression1110
Headache109

The frequencies of adverse reactions during clinical trials with another insulin glargine product, 100 units/mL, in children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes mellitus are listed in TABLE 4.

Another Insulin Glargine Product, %
(n=174)
NPH, %
(n=175)
Rhinitis55

Severe Hypoglycemia

Hypoglycemia is the most commonly observed adverse reaction in patients using insulin, including BASAGLAR [see Warnings and Precautions (5.3)]. The rates of reported hypoglycemia depend on the definition of hypoglycemia used, diabetes type, insulin dose, intensity of glucose control, background therapies, and other intrinsic and extrinsic patient factors. For these reasons, comparing rates of hypoglycemia in clinical trials for BASAGLAR with the incidence of hypoglycemia for other products may be misleading and also, may not be representative of hypoglycemia rates that will occur in clinical practice.

Severe symptomatic hypoglycemia was defined as an event with symptoms consistent with hypoglycemia requiring the assistance of another person and associated with either a blood glucose below 50 mg/dL (≤56 mg/dL in the 5-year trial and ≤36 mg/dL in the ORIGIN trial) or prompt recovery after oral carbohydrate, intravenous glucose or glucagon administration.

The incidence of severe symptomatic hypoglycemia in patients receiving BASAGLAR with type 1 diabetes mellitus and type 2 diabetes mellitus [see Clinical Studies (14)] was 4% at 52 weeks and 1% at 24 weeks, respectively.

The incidence of severe symptomatic hypoglycemia in a clinical trial with another insulin glargine product, 100 units/mL, in children and adolescents age 6 to 15 years with type 1 diabetes [see Clinical Studies (14)] was 23% at 26 weeks.

TABLE 5 displays the proportion of patients experiencing severe symptomatic hypoglycemia in another insulin glargine product, 100 units/mL, and Standard Care groups in the ORIGIN Trial [see Clinical Studies (14)].

ORIGIN Trial
Median duration of follow-up: 6.2 years
Another Insulin Glargine Product, 100 units/mL
(N=6231)
Standard Care

(N=6273)
Percent of patients62

Allergic Reactions

Some patients taking insulin therapy, including BASAGLAR have experienced erythema, local edema, and pruritus at the site of injection. These conditions were usually self-limiting. Severe cases of generalized allergy (anaphylaxis) have been reported [see Warnings and Precautions (5.5)].

Peripheral Edema

Some patients taking BASAGLAR have experienced sodium retention and edema, particularly if previously poor metabolic control is improved by intensified insulin therapy.

Lipodystrophy

Administration of insulin subcutaneously, including BASAGLAR, has resulted in lipoatrophy (depression in the skin) or lipohypertrophy (enlargement or thickening of tissue) in some patients [see Dosage and Administration (2.1)].

Weight gain

Weight gain has occurred with some insulin therapies including BASAGLAR and has been attributed to the anabolic effects of insulin and the decrease in glycosuria.

6.2 Immunogenicity

As with all therapeutic proteins, there is potential for immunogenicity.

In a 52-week study of type 1 diabetes patients, 42% of patients who received BASAGLAR once daily were positive for anti-drug antibodies (ADA) at least once during the study, including 17% that were positive at baseline and 25% of patients who developed ADA during the study. Sixty-five percent of the ADA positive patients on BASAGLAR with antibody testing at week 52 remained ADA positive at week 52.

In a 24-week study of type 2 diabetes patients, 17% of patients who received BASAGLAR once daily were positive for ADA at least once during the study. Among the subjects who were positive, 5% had ADA at baseline and 12% developed antibodies during the study. The percent binding of patients positive at baseline on BASAGLAR did not increase significantly during the study. Fifty-one percent of the ADA positive patients on BASAGLAR with antibody testing at week 24 remained ADA positive at week 24. There was no evidence that these antibodies had an impact on efficacy and safety outcomes.

The detection of antibody formation is highly dependent on the sensitivity and specificity of the assay and may be influenced by several factors such as: assay methodology, sample handling, timing of sample collection, concomitant medication, and underlying disease. For these reasons, comparison of the incidence of antibodies to BASAGLAR with the incidence of antibodies in other studies or to other products may be misleading.

6.3 Postmarketing Experience

The following adverse reactions have been identified during post-approval use of another insulin glargine product, 100 units/mL. Because these reactions are reported voluntarily from a population of uncertain size, it is not always possible to estimate reliably their frequency or establish a causal relationship to drug exposure.

Medication errors have been reported in which other insulin products, particularly rapid-acting insulins, have been accidentally administered instead of an insulin glargine product. To avoid medication errors between insulin glargine products and other insulin products, patients should be instructed to always verify the insulin label before each injection.

Localized cutaneous amyloidosis at the injection site has occurred. Hyperglycemia has been reported with repeated insulin injections into areas of localized cutaneous amyloidosis; hypoglycemia has been reported with a sudden change to an unaffected injection site.

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