The effects of sulfonylureas plus metformin on lipids, blood pressure, and adverse events in type 2 diabetes: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

摘要

To compare the effects of sulfonylureas and metformin versus metformin on lipid profiles, blood pressure, and adverse events. PubMed, EMbase, Chinese Bio-Medical Literature on disc, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, VIP database, and Wanfang database were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs), from inception to August 2012. Key outcomes were low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), triglycerides (TG), total cholesterol (TC), blood pressure (BP), hemoglobin A1e (HbA1c), fasting insulin, and adverse events. Twenty RCTs were included in the analysis. Compared to metformin, the combination therapy of sulfonylureas and metformin slightly reduced HDL-C [-0.03, 95 % CI (-0.06, -0.01)] and HbAlc (-0.79, 95 % CI -0.96 to -0.63). However, it showed little effects on LDL-C, TG, TC, and BP. Glipizide plus metformin significantly increased fasting insulin [2.33, 95 % CI (1.94, 2.73)]. Hypoglycemia and nervous system side events were more frequent among patients treated with sulfonylureas plus metformin than metformin alone (RR = 6.79, 95 % CI 3.79-12.17; RR = 1.27, 95 % CI 1.03-1.57; respectively), but less in digestive symptoms (RR = 0.75, 95 % CI 0.67-0.84). Combination therapy with sulfonylureas and metformin may be more effective than metformin alone in improving HbAlc and reducing gastrointestinal reactions. But it had disadvantage of decreasing HDL-C, increasing the risk of hypoglycemia and nervous system side events.