ArticleDiabetology & metabolic syndrome2025
Impact of metformin on intervertebral disc degeneration in patients with diabetes: a prospective cohort study from the UK biobank.
Article in Diabetology & metabolic syndrome, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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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.
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Superoxide dismutase in intervertebral disc degeneration: from pathophysiological mechanism to therapeutic strategies.Molecular biology reports · 2026Review
- Adapt, Mitigate, and Target: The Role of Oxidative Stress in Intervertebral Disc Homeostasis and Disc Degeneration.Neurospine · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
15 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveIntervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) is a major contributor to low back pain and disability. Emerging evidence suggests that type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) accelerates IDD progression, while metformin, a first-line treatment for T2DM, may offer protective effects. This study aimed to evaluate the association between metformin use and long-term IDD risk in T2DM patients using data from the UK Biobank.
methodsA prospective cohort of 20,350 individuals with T2DM was analyzed, including 11,158 metformin users and 9192 non-users. The primary outcome was incident IDD, identified via ICD-10 codes. Cox proportional hazards models estimated hazard ratios (HRs) for IDD, adjusting for demographic, behavioral, and clinical factors. A sensitivity analysis was performed by excluding patients with a follow-up period of less than 2 years to assess the stability of the results. Subgroup and interaction analyses explored effect modifiers. Predictive models using Cox regression were developed to estimate 5- and 13-year IDD risk, with model performance evaluated by area under the ROC curve (AUC).
resultsOver a median follow-up of 13 years, metformin use was significantly associated with a reduced risk of IDD [HR (95% CI): 0.863 (0.753–0.989), p = 0.034]. The results were robust in the sensitivity analysis[HR (95% CI): 0.862 (0.749–0.992), p = 0.039]. A significant interaction with sleep time and hypertension status were observed (P for interaction < 0.05). Predictive model AUCs for 5- and 13-year IDD risk were 0.64 (95% CI: 0.57–0.70) and 0.69 (95% CI: 0.66–0.73), respectively.
conclusionsThese findings suggest that metformin may lower long-term IDD risk in T2DM patients, particularly those with hypertension, highlighting its potential role in IDD prevention and the need for further interventional studies.
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