Glimepiride and Albuterol Interaction
Drug interaction information between Glimepiride and Albuterol.
Glimepiride and Albuterol have a documented minor interaction in FDA labeling.
FDA drug labeling documents a minor-severity interaction between Glimepiride and Albuterol. 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.
How They Interact
Albuterol can cause blood sugar levels to rise, which works against the effects of the diabetes medicine glimepiride.
What To Do
Monitor your blood sugar levels more often, as your doctor may need to adjust your diabetes medication.
FDA Label Information
The following are examples of medications that may reduce the glucose-lowering effect of sulfonylureas including glimepiride, leading to worsening glycemic control: danazol, glucagon, somatropin, protease inhibitors, atypical antipsychotic medications (e.g., olanzapine and clozapine), barbiturates, diazoxide, laxatives, rifampin, thiazides and other diuretics, corticosteroids, phenothiazines, thyroid hormones, estrogens, oral contraceptives, phenytoin, nicotinic acid, sympathomimetics (e.g., epinephrine, albuterol, terbutaline), and isoniazid.
Glimepiride Also Interacts With
- Fluoxetine minor
- Clonidine minor
- Olanzapine minor
- Fluconazole minor
- Clarithromycin minor
Albuterol Also Interacts With
- Theophylline major
- Albuterol/Ipratropium moderate
- Atomoxetine moderate
- Digoxin minor
- Insulin Aspart minor
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I take Glimepiride and Albuterol together?
This is a minor interaction. Monitor your blood sugar levels more often, as your doctor may need to adjust your diabetes medication.
How serious is the interaction between Glimepiride and Albuterol?
This interaction is classified as "minor" severity by the FDA. Minor interactions are unlikely to cause significant problems but should still be mentioned to your healthcare provider.
Why do Glimepiride and Albuterol interact?
Albuterol can cause blood sugar levels to rise, which works against the effects of the diabetes medicine glimepiride.
Understanding the Glimepiride and Albuterol Interaction
FDA-approved prescribing information for these two drugs flags their combination as a minor-severity interaction. Glimepiride belongs to the Sulfonylurea class and Albuterol belongs to the Short-Acting Beta-2 Agonist class - two categories that can collide when co-prescribed. The mechanism described in FDA labeling is: Albuterol can cause blood sugar levels to rise, which works against the effects of the diabetes medicine glimepiride. 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. Glimepiride has 16 total documented interactions on file in this dataset, and Albuterol has 16. 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: Monitor your blood sugar levels more often, as your doctor may need to adjust your diabetes medication. 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 Glimepiride or Albuterol 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.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.