Thursday, June 23, 2011

Add-On Drugs Compared for Uncontrolled Type 2 Diabetes

In the treatment of type 2 diabetes not controlled by metformin and a sulfonylurea, no add-on drug has an obvious advantage over another, according to an Annals of Internal Medicine network meta-analysis.

Researchers examined 18 trials comprising 4500 participants with uncontrolled diabetes. (The add-on treatments were thiazolidinediones, glucagon-like peptide-1 agonists, dipeptidyl peptidase-4 inhibitors, insulins, and acarbose.) The following effects were noted:

No drug class had an advantage in controlling glycated hemoglobin levels.
Insulins and thiazolidinediones were associated with weight gain.
Glucagon-like peptide-1 agonists were associated with weight loss.
Insulins were associated with a doubled frequency of hypoglycemic episodes.

The authors acknowledge the limitations of network meta-analysis, in which some treatments are compared indirectly. They conclude that, in choosing a third drug, an individual patient's clinical features such as weight and hypoglycemia need to be considered.

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