Type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition where the body either resists the effects of insulin or doesn’t produce enough insulin to maintain a normal glucose level.
While metformin is often the first-line therapy to help stabilize blood glucose, over time, some patients may no longer respond to it and require additional treatment.
Effective Drug Combination
Researchers from Thomas Jefferson University have found that a combination of the diabetes drugs dapagliflozin and exenatide continues to be effective, without loss of effect, even after two years of continuous use.
This finding is based on a study involving 695 adults with Type 2 diabetes, whose condition was not controlled with metformin alone.
Participants were divided into three groups. One group received weekly exenatide injections in addition to metformin, another group took daily dapagliflozin pills in addition to metformin, and a third group received both drugs together.
The study confirmed that the group of patients receiving both drugs had better glycemic control than patients receiving just one of the drugs. This effect remained stable for the duration of the extended two-year study period.
How the Drug Combo Works
Dapagliflozin, a sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitor, causes excess glucose to be excreted in the urine.
Exenatide, a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1RA), enhances glucose-dependent insulin secretion, lowers hepatic glucose output, slows gastric emptying, and increases satiety.
Together, these two drugs promote and maintain better glucose control and also contribute to additive weight loss and improved blood pressure.
The study provides valuable evidence for the long-term effectiveness of the drug combo, demonstrating that it continues to control patients’ glucose levels for over two years.
In addition to maintaining blood sugar control, the combination also showed a reduction in weight and blood pressure, factors contributing to Type 2 diabetes and overall health.
Furthermore, the research team saw no unexpected safety concerns related to the drug combination.
The study, led by Serge Jabbour, was published in the journal Diabetes Care.
The long-term effectiveness of the dapagliflozin and exenatide combination provides a promising approach for managing Type 2 diabetes in patients who do not respond to metformin alone.
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