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20-12-2022 | Metformin | News

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Metformin linked to reduced risk for joint replacement

Author: Claire Barnard

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medwireNews: Metformin use is associated with a significant reduction in the risk for total knee or hip replacement among people with type 2 diabetes, shows research published in CMAJ.

The study included 20,347 people from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database who were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2000–2012 and were treated with metformin, and the same number of matched individuals with type 2 diabetes who were not given metformin. A total of 837 people underwent total knee replacement (TKR) and 148 underwent total hip replacement (THR), mostly due to osteoarthritis.

As reported in CMAJ, metformin users had a significantly lower incidence of hip or knee replacement than nonusers during the study period, at 3.40 versus 4.99 per 10,000 person–months and a hazard ratio (HR) of 0.70 after adjustment for confounders. This association remained significant when TKR and THR were evaluated separately, at adjusted HRs of 0.71 and 0.61, respectively.

Changhai Ding (Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China) and co-researchers note that dose–response relationships between metformin use and joint replacement risk “were inconsistent.”

Overall, the study findings suggest that “[r]andomized controlled clinical trials in patients with osteoarthritis are warranted to determine whether metformin is effective in decreasing the need for joint replacement,” they conclude.

medwireNews is an independent medical news service provided by Springer Healthcare Ltd. © 2022 Springer Healthcare Ltd, part of the Springer Nature Group

CMAJ 2022; doi:10.1503/cmaj.220952

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