Searchable abstracts of presentations at key conferences in endocrinology
Endocrine Abstracts (2014) 35 P490 | DOI: 10.1530/endoabs.35.P490

ECE2014 Poster Presentations Diabetes therapy (40 abstracts)

The effects of metformin therapy on bone resorption and bone formation markers in newly diagnosed patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

Zuhal Karaca 1 , Ibrahim Sahin 1 , Cagatay Taskapan 2 , Fatma Ozyalin 2 & Saim Yologlu 3


1Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Faculty of Medicine, Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey; 2Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey; 3Department of Biostatistics, Faculty of Medicine, Inonu University, Malatya, Turkey.


Introduction: It has been shown that type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) could affect bone metabolism through several mechanism and it may increases risk for osteoporosis. Glucose lowering therapies including metformin has also been reported to may effect on bone turnover. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of metformin therapy on bone resorption and formation markers in newly diagnosed patients with T2DM.

Method/design: Study population consisted of 37 newly diagnosed patients with T2DM. Fasting plasma glucose (FPG), post prandial plasma glucose (PPG), HbA1c, Ca, P, PTH, osteocalcin and type 1 collagen C-telopeptide (CTX) levels were measured before and after 3 months metformin therapy period.

Results: Metformin therapy significantly decreased osteocalcin, which is biomarker of bone formation, in female patients. Metformin therapy also decreased CTX, which is biomarker of bone resorption, in these patients. But this decrease was not statistically significant (Table 1). There was no significant change in Ca, P and PTH levels after metformin therapy.

Table 1 Metformin therapy on bone resorption and bone formation markers.
Before therapyAfter therapyP values
CTX (ng/ml)297±187.9272±196.80.23
Osteocalcin (ng/ml)6.23±5.524.7±3.04<0.05

Conclusions: Our results indicate that metformin therapy may impair bone formation by decreasing bone formation in patients with T2DM. Further controlled, long term studies are needed to clarify clinical importance of these findings.

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