Key clinical point: Combination of metformin plus a low hypoglycemic risk antidiabetic drug provides better glycemic control than metformin monotherapy without increasing the risk for hypoglycemia in patients with untreated type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D).
Major finding: Combination therapy vs. metformin monotherapy significantly reduced glycated hemoglobin (A1c) levels (mean difference [MD] −0.48%; P < .001) and fasting plasma glucose levels (MD −0.92 mmol/L; P < .001) and led to a higher proportion of patients achieving an A1c level of <7% (odds ratio 2.21; P < .00001), without any significant increase in hypoglycemic events.
Study details: Findings are from a meta-analysis of 14 randomized controlled trials including 5316 patients with untreated T2D who were randomly assigned to receive combination therapy or metformin monotherapy.
Disclosures: This work was supported by Ministry of Science and Technology and Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taiwan. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
Source: Hung WT et al. Metformin plus a low hypoglycemic risk antidiabetic drug vs. metformin monotherapy for untreated type 2 diabetes mellitus: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Diabetes Res Clin Pract. 2022;189:10937 (Jun 1). Doi: 10.1016/j.diabres.2022.109937