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Dolutegravir and Empagliflozin Interaction

Drug interaction information between Dolutegravir and Empagliflozin.

Dolutegravir and Empagliflozin have a documented moderate interaction in FDA labeling.

FDA drug labeling documents a moderate-severity interaction between Dolutegravir and Empagliflozin. Major interactions are generally avoided, moderate ones may need monitoring or a dose adjustment, and minor ones are usually low-risk. This page shows the documented mechanism and guidance. Label-documented interactions are not a complete safety review, so always confirm your own medications with a pharmacist or doctor. Educational information, not medical advice.

Drug A

Dolutegravir

Integrase Strand Transfer Inhibitor

Drug B

Empagliflozin

SGLT2 Inhibitor

How They Interact

Dolutegravir blocks the kidneys from removing metformin from the body. This can cause metformin levels to rise, which increases the risk of a serious condition called lactic acidosis.

What To Do

Your doctor may need to adjust your dose or monitor you more closely for side effects.

FDA Label Information

Drugs that Reduce Metformin Clearance Clinical Impact Concomitant use of drugs that interfere with common renal tubular transport systems involved in the renal elimination of metformin (e.g., organic cationic transporter-2 [OCT2] / multidrug and toxin extrusion [MATE] inhibitors such as ranolazine, vandetanib, dolutegravir, and cimetidine) could increase systemic exposure to metformin and may increase the risk for lactic acidosis [see Clinical Pharmacology (12.3) ] .

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I take Dolutegravir and Empagliflozin together?

This is a moderate interaction. Your doctor may need to adjust your dose or monitor you more closely for side effects.

How serious is the interaction between Dolutegravir and Empagliflozin?

This interaction is classified as "moderate" severity by the FDA. Moderate interactions may worsen your condition or change how your medications work.

Why do Dolutegravir and Empagliflozin interact?

Dolutegravir blocks the kidneys from removing metformin from the body. This can cause metformin levels to rise, which increases the risk of a serious condition called lactic acidosis.

Understanding the Dolutegravir and Empagliflozin Interaction

FDA-approved prescribing information for these two drugs flags their combination as a moderate-severity interaction. Dolutegravir belongs to the Integrase Strand Transfer Inhibitor class and Empagliflozin belongs to the SGLT2 Inhibitor class - two categories that can collide when co-prescribed. The mechanism described in FDA labeling is: Dolutegravir blocks the kidneys from removing metformin from the body. Severity tiers matter: major flags generally advise avoidance, moderate flags often require monitoring or dose adjustment, and minor flags may only call for awareness.

Context around a specific patient determines real-world impact. Dolutegravir has 28 total documented interactions on file in this dataset, and Empagliflozin has 10. Each additional medication compounds the interaction surface, which is why pharmacists run full-profile checks rather than evaluating one pair at a time. FDA-derived guidance for this pair is: Your doctor may need to adjust your dose or monitor you more closely for side effects. Timing of doses, renal and hepatic function, age, and other concurrent prescriptions all shape whether a labeled interaction matters clinically.

An interaction flag is not a verdict. A large share of labeled interactions are managed routinely in clinical practice, the fix may be as simple as spacing doses or adding a monitoring test. Others require the prescriber to choose a different medication entirely. This page surfaces FDA-sourced labeling and openFDA data for educational purposes only; it is not medical advice and cannot account for your full clinical picture. Never start, stop, or adjust either Dolutegravir or Empagliflozin based on a web page, speak with your prescriber or pharmacist before making any change.

Sources: FDA Drug Labels (SPL) via openFDA (2026). This is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider about drug interactions.