Diabetes medication

Drugs used in diabetes treat types of diabetes mellitus by decreasing glucose levels in the blood. With the exception of insulin, most GLP-1 receptor agonists (liraglutide, exenatide, and others), and pramlintide, all diabetes medications are administered orally and are thus called oral hypoglycemic agents or oral antihyperglycemic agents. There are different classes of hypoglycemic drugs, and selection of the appropriate agent depends on the nature of diabetes, age, and situation of the person, as well as other patient factors.

Type 1 diabetes or Diabetes mellitus is an endocrine disorder characterized by hyperglycemia due to autoimmune destruction of insulin-secreting pancreatic beta cells or from variable degrees of insulin resistance and deficiency. Chronic hyperglycemia of diabetes can lead to multiorgan damage, resulting in renal, neurologic, cardiovascular, and other serious complications. The treatment for Type 1 diabetes is insulin injection.

Type 2 diabetes is the most common type of diabetes. Type 2 diabetes occurs because the body doesn’t use the hormone insulin properly. Insulin helps your body absorb glucose and use it for energy. If your body doesn’t make enough insulin or doesn’tuse insulin properly, you have a condition called insulin resistance. Insulin resistance requires the body to produce higher levels of insulin. Over time, the body cannot keep up with the demand for extra insulin and type 2 diabetes develops. Treatments include agents that (1) increase the amount of insulin secreted by the pancreas, (2) increase the sensitivity of target organs to insulin, (3) decrease the rate at which glucose is absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract, and (4) increase the loss of glucose through urination.

Several drug classes are indicated for use in type 2 diabetes and are often used in combination. Therapeutic combinations may include several insulin isoforms or varying classes of oral antihyperglycemic agents. As of 2020, 23 unique antihyperglycemic drug combinations were approved by the FDA. The first triple combination of oral anti-diabetics was approved in 2019, consisting of metformin, saxaglipti, and dapagliflozin. Another triple combination approval for metformin, linagliptin, and empagliflozin followed in 2020.