Metformin Vs Insulin for Treatment of Gestational Diabetes-A Randomized Clinical Trial

Abstract

Background: The incidence of gestational diabetes is increasing day by day. It carries a risk of adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes affecting the normal quality of life of pregnant females and babies.

Aim: To compare the maternal and neonatal outcomes in women treated with metformin versus insulin for the management of gestational diabetes mellitus.

Materials and Methods: We carried a prospective, randomized controlled trial on 80 patients with gestational diabetes at Chalmeda Anand Rao Institute of Medical Sciences, Karimnagar, Telangana State from January 2014 to June 2015. The sample was categorized randomly into Group I (n=40) who received Metformin with insulin and Group II (n=40) who received insulin. various outcome measures like birth weight of babies, maternal gain in birth weight, mode of delivery, BMI of mothers were measured and compared.

Results: The mean age of the patients was 31.35 ± 4.02 and 30.21 ± 4.14 years in metformin and insulin groups respectively, with the difference being statistically insignificant (p=0.2152). The mean gestational age of the patients at the beginning of study was 29.32±2.60 and 30.02±2.13 weeks in metformin and insulin groups respectively, with the difference being statistically insignificant (p=0.1916).

Conclusion: Patients with gestational diabetes can be safely given metformin as it shows less maternal side effects and is also preferred when compared to subcutaneous insulin by mothers.