ArticleEndocrine connections2020
Long-term efficacy of metformin in overweight-obese PCOS: longitudinal follow-up of retrospective cohort.
Article in Endocrine connections, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers.
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.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 47 citations in OpenAlex.
- Effect of metformin treatment on ovarian function in hypothyroid rats.Open veterinary journal · 2026Article
- Obesity as a Part of Polycysric Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)-A Review of Pathophysiology and Comprehensive Therapeutic Strategies.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- What do users in a polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) forum think about the treatments they tried: Analysing treatment sentiment using machine learning.Physical and engineering sciences in medicine · 2025Article
- Impact of Metformin Therapy on Chronic Inflammatory Markers Serum Fractalkine and CRP Levels in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: A Pilot Study on Chronic Inflammatory Markers and Clinical Outcomes.Journal of obstetrics and gynaecology of India · 2025Article
- Metformin in polycystic ovary syndrome: unraveling multi-stage therapeutic mechanisms from puberty to long-term health outcomes.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Review
- Multiple Benefits of Empagliflozin in PCOS: Evidence from a Preclinical Rat Model.Pathophysiology : the official journal of the International Society for Pathophysiology · 2024Article
- Efficacy of optimal nutraceutical combination in treating PCOS characteristics: an in-silico assessment.BMC endocrine disorders · 2024Article
- Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells as a Possible Approach for Exploring the Pathophysiology of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS).Stem cell reviews and reports · 2024Review
- Metabolic control of ovarian function through the sympathetic nervous system: role of leptin.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2024Review
- The maintenance of long-term weight loss after semaglutide withdrawal in obese women with PCOS treated with metformin: a 2-year observational study.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2024Observational
- The Implication of Mechanistic Approaches and the Role of the Microbiome in Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS): A Review.Metabolites · 2023Review
- Silver Nanoparticles Biofabricated from Cinnamomum zeylanicum Reduce IL-6, IL-18, and TNF-ɑ in Female Rats with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome.International journal of fertility & sterility · 2023Article
- Antioxidative Effects of StandardizedAntioxidants (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Article
- Impact of metformin on the clinical and metabolic parameters of women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials.Therapeutic advances in endocrinology and metabolism · 2022Review
- Effects of metformin withdrawal after long and short term treatment in PCOS: observational longitudinal study.Diabetology & metabolic syndrome · 2021Article
- A review of therapeutic options for managing the metabolic aspects of polycystic ovary syndrome.Therapeutic advances in endocrinology and metabolism · 2020Review
- Update on the therapeutic role of metformin in the management of polycystic ovary syndrome: Effects on pathophysiologic process and fertility outcomes.Women's health (London, England)Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveLong-term efficacy of metformin in polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) apart from in those with impaired glucose tolerance or diabetes remains unproven. We aimed to evaluate the impact of metformin in overweight-obese patients with PCOS and normal baseline glycemic homeostasis.
methodsA 10-year longitudinal follow-up of a retrospective cohort comprising 159 patients with PCOS defined by Rotterdam criteria, BMI ≥25 kg/m2 and normal initial glucose homeostasis (age 28.4 ± 6.4 years, BMI 34.9 ± 6.6 kg/m2) that had been receiving metformin 1000 mg BID. Collection data contained 6085 time-points including anthropometric, hormonal and metabolic parameters.
resultsAfter the first year body mass (BM) decreased for 3.9 ± 6.8 kg (P < 0.001) and remained stable during the following 3 years. Menstrual frequency (MF) increased to 3.0 ± 3.9 bleeds/year (P < 0.001) after first year to over 11 bleeds/year in the following years. The total testosterone and androstenedione decreased to 15.4 ± 47.9% and 11.3 ± 46.4% within first year, with further decrease in total testosterone and androstenedione to 37.8 ± 61.8 and 24.8 ± 40.5% at the fifth year of the follow-up. The total conversion rate to prediabetes and diabetes was extremely low throughout observation period. Less than 25% of patients continued with metformin for more than 5 years with further dropout to only 6% on metformin therapy at the tenth year of follow-up.
conclusionsLong-term metformin treatment of overweight-obese women with PCOS and normal baseline glycemic homeostasis resulted in reduction and stabilization of BM, improvements of MF and androgen profile and low conversion rate to diabetes.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.