Metformin is a drug used to treat patients having diabetes. There are 2 types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2 and metformin is only used to treat people having type 2 diabetes. Metformin come as a tablet and taken by mouth. It is the drug of choice to lower the blood sugar level when a person is first found to have diabetes.[1]
Uses
- Type-II diabetes - adult onset diabetes due to lack of insulin production and resistance of body tissues to insulin
- Gestational diabetes - diabetes during pregnancy
- To treat obesity in diabetes - metformin lowers the appetite and used to treat obesity[2]
- Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) - presence of multiple ("poly") fluid filled cavities ("cystic") in the ovaries of females[3]
Side effects
- Nausea
- Diarrhea
- Abdominal cramps
- Flatulence
- Lactic acidosis
Metformin is not used in patients having severe kidney disease.[4]
History
Metformin was first produced from the French lilac or goat's rue (Galega officinalis). Its blood sugar-lowering property was first described in 1929 by Slotta and Tschesche.[5] Metformin became available in Britain in 1958 and got approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for type 2 diabetes in 1994.[6] Today, Metformin has become the world's most widely used medication to treat type 2 diabetes.[7]
References
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