11-year data shows metformin is as safe as insulin in pregnancy
Last reviewed: 14.06.2024
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Metformin is safe for use during pregnancy to manage diabetes, with no long-term adverse effects for children born to such mothers and the mothers themselves for at least 11 years after birth, according to a study presented on ENDO 2024, the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society in Boston, Massachusetts. This is the first study to look at the long-term effects of metformin use during pregnancy.
"Metformin has been used extensively for decades to manage elevated blood glucose levels during pregnancy. It is the only oral blood glucose lowering agent approved for use during pregnancy," said Dr. Deep Dutta, Director of Endocrinology at CEDAR Superspeciality Healthcare in Dwarka, New Delhi, India.
The researchers noted that most of the studies analyzed covered only about five years after birth. They sought to understand the long-term effects on mothers with diabetes and their children, going beyond previously published data.
In a literature review, the researchers analyzed data from 10,117 child-mother pairs taken from seven different cohort studies.
Nine-year-old children born to mothers who took metformin during pregnancy showed similar values for BMI, waist circumference, total body fat mass by DXA (dual energy X-ray absorptiometry), percent body fat mass by DXA, and lean body mass by DXA, visceral adipose tissue by MRI, and percentage of liver fat by magnetic resonance spectroscopy compared with children whose mothers used insulin during pregnancy.
They ultimately concluded that taking metformin during pregnancy is as safe as using insulin to lower blood glucose levels during pregnancy. Rates of obesity and diabetes in mothers who took metformin during pregnancy were also similar during the 11-year period after birth.
Dr Dutta noted that the rates of obesity, diabetes or problems with motor development in the two groups of children were also similar up to 11 years after birth.
“Our study provides us with encouraging data on the long-term safety of metformin use during pregnancy for children and their mothers,” said Dr. Dutta.