By Colin Kenny, Editor – Diabetes Distilled
Investigators wanted to find out which oral therapies were associated with the best persistence, as medication persistence in type 2 diabetes can contribute to improved glycaemic control. They performed an analysis of a primary-care-based population cohort, comparing median persistence across each class of antidiabetes medication. They found that metformin had the longest median persistence, and that other medications classes varied, sometimes markedly, from this agent. This should be considered when initiating treatments.
This study was a retrospective cohort analysis of a primary-care-based population where investigators identified new prescriptions for oral diabetes medication in people with type 2 diabetes from 2004 to 2015. Comparisons were made of persistence across each medication class. In all, 60,327 adults with type 2 diabetes were identified and the majority (42,810; 70.9%) of those had one or more oral medications prescribed. Investigators then measured persistence in those individuals.
They found metformin to have the longest median persistence. Only metformin, sulfonylureas and SGLT2 inhibitors had more than 50% persistence at 2 years. Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors were found to have the highest rates of non-persistence in clinical practice. Younger people and people of non-white ethnicity had the lowest medication persistence. The authors concluded that persistence is strongly influenced by medication class and should be considered when initiating treatments.
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