Medicines and prescriptions
What Is Secondary Failure of a Diabetes Medicine?
Secondary failure · say it: SEK-un-dair-ee FAYL-yerAlso written: secondary treatment failure, secondary drug failure, loss of response
Short answer
Secondary failure is when a medicine that worked well at first becomes less effective over time, for example a diabetes tablet after months or years.
What it means
Secondary failure means a medicine controlled a condition well at the start but stops working as well later on. Primary failure is when it never works well from the beginning. The term is used most often with diabetes medicines such as sulfonylureas: blood sugar control may be good at first and then gradually worsen, often because type 2 diabetes tends to progress over time.
Labels for sulfonylureas and some other diabetes medicines mention secondary failure to explain that a loss of effect over time can happen and does not necessarily mean the person has done anything wrong. It is a reason for regular check-ups, such as HbA1c tests, and for reviewing the treatment plan, which may mean a dose change or adding another medicine.
Secondary failure is different from forgetting doses or a short-term rise in blood sugar during illness. In other areas, such as biologic medicines, a similar idea is called 'loss of response'.
Where you may see it
- The 'Clinical Pharmacology' or 'Precautions' section of sulfonylurea labels
- Diabetes clinic letters
- Medication review notes
📄 How it looks on a report
Loss of control of blood glucose may occur over time, known as secondary failure.
🙅 What it does not mean
- Secondary failure does not mean you failed or did something wrong.
- It does not mean the tablet was faulty; the condition often changes over time.
- It does not mean all treatments will stop working; other options are usually available.
🎯 Check yourself
Which of these is the right meaning of “Secondary failure”?
🗒️ Questions to ask your doctor
🧾 Reports where you will see “Secondary failure”
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💊 Medicines whose labels mention “Secondary failure”
Plain-English explanations of each medicine, from its official FDA label.
- Glipizide
a blood-sugar-lowering medicine of the sulfonylurea type
🔗 Read more from trusted sources
- “Secondary failure” on MedlinePlus ↗
US National Library of Medicine
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