Evidence map›Paper›PMID 27973619›Full record

Trial reportPloS one2016

Effects of Low Dose Metformin on Metabolic Traits in Clozapine-Treated Schizophrenia Patients: An Exploratory Twelve-Week Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study.

Chih-Chiang Chiu, Mong-Liang Lu, Ming-Chyi Huang, Po-Yu Chen, Yen-Kuang Lin, Shih-Ku Lin, Chun-Hsin Chen

Erratum issued 2 registry-linked trialsOpen access · goldFull text readRandomized Controlled Trial
In one paragraph

Trial report in PloS one, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. It reports registered trial NCT02751307. Cited by 10 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
0.7field-weighted citation impact, top 26% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT02751307 phase4completed

Treatment of Metabolic Abnormalities in Patients With Schizophrenia: Adjunctive Low-dose Metformin in Patients With Schizophrenia and Metabolic Abnormalities

Ran2013Enrolled55Registered outcomes7Posted comparisons0ConditionsMetabolic SyndromeArmsclozapine 100 mg, Metformin 500 mg
Open the trial in the graph
NCT03575000 phase4not yet recruitingnot on this mapstarted 2026, after this paper: background citation

Open-label, Flexible-dose Adjunctive Bromocriptine for Patients With Schizophrenia and Prediabetes

TypeinterventionalSponsorVA Pittsburgh Healthcare SystemRan2026 to 2026Enrolled15ConditionsSchizophrenia, PreDiabetesArmsBromocriptine
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 18 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Guideline
  4. Pooled it
  5. Pooled it
  6. Trial
  7. Analysis of clinical studies on clozapine from 2012-2022.Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's archives of pharmacology · 2024
    Review
  8. Review
  9. Review
  10. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Chih-Chiang ChiuDepartment of Psychiatry, Taipei City Psychiatric Center, Taipei City Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Mong-Liang LuDepartment of Psychiatry, Taipei City Psychiatric Center, Taipei City Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Ming-Chyi HuangDepartment of Psychiatry, Taipei City Psychiatric Center, Taipei City Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Po-Yu ChenDepartment of Psychiatry, Taipei City Psychiatric Center, Taipei City Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Yen-Kuang LinBiostatistics Center, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Shih-Ku LinDepartment of Psychiatry, Taipei City Psychiatric Center, Taipei City Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Chun-Hsin ChenDepartment of Psychiatry, Taipei City Psychiatric Center, Taipei City Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Taipei Medical University · TWTaipei City Hospital · TWWan Fang Hospital · TW

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundMetformin has been used for alleviating metabolic abnormalities in patients with schizophrenia. The lowest dose of metformin to treat metabolic abnormalities in clozapine-treated patients is 1000 mg/d. This study was designed to determine whether metformin at 500 mg/d and 1000 mg/d is effective in improving the metabolic profiles of clozapine-treated patients with pre-existing metabolic abnormalities, and whether its effectiveness depends on metformin dosage.

methodsIn this 12-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, metformin at 500 mg/d or 1000 mg/d was prescribed to clozapine-treated patients with schizophrenia who had pre-existing metabolic abnormalities. The recruited patients underwent physical and laboratory evaluations at weeks 4, 8, and 12. The outcomes were any changes in metabolic traits.

resultsAmong the 96 clozapine-treated patients with schizophrenia screened for the trial, 55 patients with pre-existing metabolic abnormalities were randomly assigned to placebo (n = 18), metformin dosage at 500 mg/d (n = 18), and metformin dosage at 1000 mg/d (n = 19) groups. The body weight (BW) of patients in the metformin 1000 mg/d group significantly decreased, by a mean of 0.97 kg over the 12 week trial period. Moreover, patients in the metformin at 500 mg/d and 1000 mg/d groups had a significant decrease in body mass index (BMI) after 12 weeks, with the mean decrease being 0.70 and 0.50 kg/m2, respectively. No significant changes were observed in the other metabolic parameters of patients in the three groups.

conclusionsOur results demonstrated that a low metformin dosage of either 500 mg/d or 1000 mg/d for 12 weeks slightly reduced the BW and BMI of clozapine-treated patients with pre-existing metabolic abnormalities. A longer period of treatment with a larger sample is warranted to determine the factors that influence the metformin treatment response.

trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT02751307.

Indexed as

AdultAntipsychotic AgentsBody Mass IndexBody WeightClozapineDouble-Blind MethodFemaleHumansHypoglycemic AgentsInsulin ResistanceMaleMetforminMiddle AgedSchizophreniaTreatment OutcomeAntipsychotic AgentsClozapineHypoglycemic AgentsMetformin

Identifiers

PMID27973619
PMCPMC5156367
OpenAlexW2563964627

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.