March 29, 2024

Diabetes: 2 common drugs outperform others, study finds – Medical News Today

Share on PinterestA study found that common diabetes drugs glargine and liraglutide are most effective for reducing blood glucose levels. MJ_Prototype/Getty ImagesResearchers compared the efficacy of four diabetes drugs in reducing blood glucose levels. They found that glargine and liraglutide are most effective for reducing blood glucose levels. However, liraglutide and sitagliptin induced the most weight loss. They said that their findings could help healthcare professionals prescribe differen…….

Share on PinterestA study found that common diabetes drugs glargine and liraglutide are most effective for reducing blood glucose levels. MJ_Prototype/Getty Images

  • Researchers compared the efficacy of four diabetes drugs in reducing blood glucose levels.
  • They found that glargine and liraglutide are most effective for reducing blood glucose levels. However, liraglutide and sitagliptin induced the most weight loss.
  • They said that their findings could help healthcare professionals prescribe different medications to patients based on their needs.

According to the American Diabetes Association, around 11.3% of the United States population, or 37.3 million people, had diabetes in 2019. Of these people, 35.4 million had type 2 diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body does not make sufficient insulin or becomes insulin resistant and thus cannot easily absorb glucose from the blood.

Researchers and healthcare professionals generally agree that metformin- an anti-diabetic medication used to lower blood sugar levels and increase sensitivity to insulin โ€” alongside exercise and diet โ€” is the best strategy for early diabetes care. However, later stages of diabetes require other medications alongside metformin.

Currently, there is no consensus on which medication is most effective for reducing blood glucose levels. Research comparing the efficacy of anti-diabetic medications could thus improve patient care.

Recently, researchers conducted a clinical trial to assess the efficacy of metformin alongside four commonly-prescribed anti-diabetic drugs.

They found that drugs known as insulin glargine and liraglutide were most effective in maintaining blood glucose levels within the recommended range.

The results were published in two papers in the New England Journal of Medicine, one discussing the blood glucose findings and the other on cardiovascular outcomes.

For the study, the researchers tracked 5,047 individuals who had received metformin for type 2 diabetes for an average of 5 years. They had an average age of 57, with more than 60% identified as white men โ€” all had type 2 diabetes for less than 10 years at the start of the study.

The researchers randomly assigned participants one of four glucose-lowering medications:

  • insulin glargine U-100
  • glimepiride
  • liraglutide
  • sitagliptin

The researchers monitored participantsโ€™ glycated hemoglobin, which measures their average blood glucose levels over the previous 2-3months. They also examined cardiovascular outcomes including hypertension and cholesterol.

Experts typically advise that people with Type 2 diabetes should have glycated hemoglobin below 7% to minimize the negative health impacts of their diabetes. The study reported that 71% of the …….

Source: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/2-common-diabetes-drugs-more-effective-than-others-study