HEADLINE: NEW OR OLD?
ANCHOR LEAD: WHAT IS THE BEST MEDICATION FOR TYPE 2 DIABETES? ELIZABETH TRACEY REPORTS
Tried and true may be better than new and improved when it comes to medications to treat type 2 diabetes, the federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality concluded in a recent analysis. The agency found that certain medications emerged as superior in terms of cost, side effects and so on. Christopher Saudek, a diabetes expert at Johns Hopkins, concurs.
SAUDEK: We have a panel of drugs we can use now and at least two of them are old, inexpensive, and effective. And then there are a whole series of expensive, new, and difficult to use drugs in a way. Metformin is generally regarded as the first line drug to use in type 2 diabetes. Metformin however, can cause GI side effects in quite a few people. The real sleeper drug class, I think, are the sulfonylureas, that is glipaside, globuride, and micronase. :31
So talk with your doctor about the best choice of diabetes medication for you. I’m Elizabeth Tracey reporting.
