Postprandial glyсеmia, body weight, and cardiovascular parameters in diabetes type 2 in metformin monotherapy

Abstract

Twenty-five patients with type 2 diabetes (DM-2) and its moderate initial decompensation (8.83±1.85%) were examined. The mean age of the examinees was 53.16±8.92 years; the duration of the disease was 2.50±3.06 years. There were 18 females (mean age 54.11 ±9.67 years) whose disease duration was 2.71±3.08 years and 7 males (mean age 50.7 1±6.63 years) with a disease duration of 1.95±3.17 years. Before prescribing metformin, all the patients received diet therapy, but without making a special monitoring of the calorie content of a diet. All the patients were given metformin in an initial daily dose of 500 mg. Later on the daily dose of metformin was increased up to 1000-1500 mg. Metformin treatment was performed during low-calorie diet (as high as 1200 kcal daily); compliance was monitored by an individual dietary diary. In patients with DM-2, metformin exerted a positive effect on fasting glycemia (p = 0.001) and postprandial hyperglycemia (absolute and relative areas under the curve in the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT)). At the same time there were no perceptible changes in the level of glycated hemoglobin (p = 0.533). Although metformin caused a noticeable decrease from 5.75±4.72 to 3.97±2.71, it was yet statistically insignificant (p = 0.181). In patients with DM-2, metformin therapy enhanced a low-calorie diet-induced body weight loss, most markedly within the first three months of therapy. At the same time, a meta-analysis has shown that this effect of metformin is rather moderate (p = 0.02). Metformin treatment for MD-2 during low-calorie diet improves lipid metabolism, by significantly decreasing the levels of total cholesterol and low-density lipoproteins, and lowers systolic blood pressure.