Prescribing Patterns of Antidiabetic Agents and Glycemic Control in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients

Abstract

Introduction

Despite the availability of several effective classes of antidiabetic drugs, many Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients continue to have inadequate glycemic control. This study aimed to assess the prescribing patterns of antidiabetic agents and evaluate glycemic control in T2DM patients.

Methods

A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in Medicine outpatient department of tertiary care hospital. Patient demographic profile, antidiabetic medicine, number of antidiabetic medicine, blood HbA1c were recorded in a pre-designed proforma. The collected data was analyzed with SPSS software version 16.00.

Result

Out of 148 patients, female patients constituted a higher proportion of the study population (83, 56.1%) and common age group ranging from 51-60 years (45, 30.4%). Biguanides were the most frequently prescribed antidiabetic agents (134, 90.5%). Dual therapy was the most commonly prescribed regimen (54, 36.5%), where the combination of metformin and sulfonylureas was the most frequently used regimen (22, 14.9%). HbA1c levels showed that only 66 (44.6%) of patients had good glycemic control.

Conclusion

Metformin-based therapy remained the cornerstone of T2DM management; however, a considerable proportion of patients fail to achieve optimal glycemic control.