Oral Anti Diabetic Agents Are Used As Pharmacotherapy Options

Introduction: †¢ Oral anti diabetic agents are used as pharmacotherapy options mainly for type 2 diabetes patients or as an adjuvant therapy for type 1 diabetes patients, who need an oral agent along with insulin/insulin analogues for better glycemic control. There are a wide variety of oral anti diabetic drug classes that are available. The choice of pharmacotherapy is patient specific and usually a stepped therapy approach is applied and titrated as per individual patient requirements. The article here is a detailed overview of the different classes of these oral agents, their pharmacology, comparative efficacy, efficacy results from clinical trials, general recommendations etc. †¢ The different classes of oral anti diabetics starting from traditional therapy to the latest developments are as follows : ï  ¶ BIGUANIDES [METFORMIN] ï  ¶ SULFONYLUREAS a. FIRST GENERATION SULFONYLUREAS. b. SECOND GENERATION SULFONYLUREAS. ï  ¶ MEGLITINIDES ï  ¶ THIAZOLIDINEDIONES ï  ¶ DPP-4 INHIBITORS ï  ¶ ALPHA-GLUCOSIDASE INHIBITORS ï  ¶ SGL2 INHIBITORS (NEWEST CLASS OF DRUGS) CLASS I: BIGUANIDES [METFORMIN] According to the ADA (American Diabetes Association) 2013 guidelines, metformin is considered as first line therapy for initiation of treatment in a type 2 diabetes patient when lifestyle modifications, diet and exercise fail to achieve glycemic control. Mechanism of action: Metformin decreases hepatic glucose production thereby decreasing intestinal absorption of