This information is based on the NICE (National Institute for Clinical Excellence) Guidelines on the uses of sibutramine for the treatment of obesity in adults. The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) is a part of the NHS. It produces guidance for both the NHS and patients on medicines, medical equipment, diagnostic tests and clinical & surgical procedures and where they should be used.
Sibutramine (Reductil) works in the brain by altering appetite. It mainly affects two chemicals called noradrenaline and serotonin and promotes a feeling of being full or having eaten enough.
Sibutramine causes increases in the blood pressure of some of the people who take it. People who are prescribed sibutramine must have their blood pressure checked before starting treatment and at intervals during treatment. People with high blood pressure should not take sibutramine.
NICE has recommended that sibutramine should be prescribed only as part of an overall treatment plan for the management of obesity for people with diabetes aged 18-65 years who:
When people are prescribed sibutramine they should also be offered advice, support and counselling on diet, exercise and behaviour changes.
Treatment is not recommended for more than 12 months.
There is no evidence to show that prescribing sibutramine with other drugs used to treat obesity has any benefits.
Dr Nishan Wijenaike, Consultant Physician
West Suffolk Hospital Diabetes Service
October 2002