Metformin use significantly reduces risk of joint replacement in diabetes patients

Globally the number of total knee replacement (TKR) and total hip replacement (THR) surgeries is on the rise. One of the main reasons for the same is  osteoarthritis for which no medications are currently available for prevention or reversal of disease. Many a times the joint pain and disability  is severe enough to require knee and hip replacements.  osteoarthritis.

Researchers have found in a new study that Metformin use in patients with type 2 DM was associated with a significantly reduced risk of total joint replacement largely due to osteoarthritis. The study demonstrated that metformin use in patients with type 2 DM was associated with significantly reduced risks (around 30%) of total joint replacement largely due to OA, suggesting a potential therapeutic effect of metformin on OA.

The study has been published in Canadian Medical Association Journal.

Observational studies examining the associations of metformin use with OA-related endpoints are rare and inconclusive. While two studies reported that metformin use was associated with reduced annual loss of medial cartilage volume 18 or joint replacement surgery,19 another study reported no significant association between metformin use and the risk of OA occurrence among patients with type 2 DM. To our knowledge, there is no previous study investigating whether sole metformin use was associated with reduced risk of TKR and/or THR in patients with type 2 DM using population-level data. Therefore, the aim of this study is to examine if metformin prescription is associated with reduced risks of TKR and/or THR in patients with type 2 DM by using a nationwide database of the Taiwan's National Health Insurance (NHI)