Insulin sensitizer combination therapy for type 2 diabetes

To determine whether combination therapy with metformin and a thiazolidinedione was effective treatment for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus whose primary pathology was insulin resistance, we studied 348 patients for 26 weeks. A combination of metformin and rosiglitazone lowered fasting plasma glucose levels by 52.9 mg/dL and increased the patients' ability to achieve a target glycosylated hemoglobin level of below 7%. Using a combination of metformin and a thiazolidinedione to treat, rather than compensate for, insulin resistance introduces the possibility of addressing issues beyond glycemic control, including cardiovascular disease.