Why carry out this study?

Despite the advantages associated with glycemic control, previous research has found that treatment delays are common in the treatment of type 2 diabetes (T2D).

This study examines the relationship between treatment with oral glucose-lowering agents (GLAs) and glycemic control.

What was learned from the study?

Among the 4156 individuals included in the study, half of all patients were found to have sustained HbA1c above the target level, defined as ≥ 2 sequential hemoglobin A1c ( HbA1c) results above target, after 3 years; and among such patients, the average number of days that HbA1c remained above target was 1026 (2.8 years).

Only 36% of patients with sustained HbA1c above target added a GLA to their treatment regimen, and for patients who did add such a therapy, the average number of days from identification of HbA1c above target until such treatment intensification was 401 days (1.1 years).

Multivariable analyses revealed that, among those with sustained HbA1c ≥ 7%, treatment with more classes of oral GLAs was associated with a significantly higher glycemic burden and significantly lower odds of clinical inertia.

The results of this study illustrate the large glycemic burden and clinical inertia towards treatment intensification associated with the use of oral GLAs.