Publication:

A comparative study of efficacy and safety of vildagliptin against metformin in newly diagnosed patients of type 2 diabetes mellitus

Background Diabetes mellitus is a progressive disease characterised by declining β-cell function. Cornerstone of effective management of T2DM is maintaining strict glycaemic control through agency of various oral hypo-glycaemic agents (OHAs). Metformin (a biguanide) currently forms the preferred treatment in newly diagnosed patients of T2DM. Vildagliptin is a potent, orally administered, competitive and reversible inhibitor of DPP-4, which was launched in 2006 and is now approved in more than 70 countries worldwide.

Methods The study was a single blinded study conducted in a district level tertiary care hospital attached to a medical teaching institute. Newly diagnosed patients were screened and randomised in two groups. Group 1 received metformin (500 mg) twice daily and group 2 received vildagliptin (50 mg) twice daily. FPG, PPPG, HbA1c and Weight were assessed on week 0 and week 12.

Results At the end of 12 weeks, ∆FPG was 39.33±4.72mg/dL and 37.84±6.58mg/dL with metformin and vildagliptin respectively. ∆PPPG was 73.88±13.80 mg/dL and 65.08±13.00mg/dL with metformin and vildagliptin. ∆HbA1c was 1.12±0.46 and 0.95±0.32 with metformin and vildagliptin. ∆Weight was 1.02±0.90 Kg with metformin and 0.69±1.33 Kg.

Conclusions Vildagliptin offers an alternative mode of therapy for newly diagnosed, obese patients of type 2 DM, especially those with impaired fasting plasma glucose.