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Does metformin cause more adverse events & safety than other treatments?
Also asked versus placebo.
Not modeled yetTrial evidence exists, but no mechanistic model yetWithout a model there is no decisive experiment to propose. Help build it. →
Where the evidence stands
Unlikely. So far, the results disagree.
NoUnsureYes
- Belief
- 0.12 (range 0.00–0.55)
- Trials for
- 1
- Trials against
- 7
- Inconclusive
- 0
Already under way
No registered trial that could settle this is recruiting or active.
The evidence so far
- Registered trials
- 526
- With posted results
- 190
- Published papers
- 74
Of 64 decided analyses: 20 favor metformin, 33 find no difference, 11 favor the comparator.
Papers
- Impact of metformin on peak aerobic capacity.Trial report · 2008
- Bexagliflozin as an adjunct to metformin for the treatment of type 2 diabetes in adults: A 24-week, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.Trial report · 2023
- Efficacy and safety of ipragliflozin as an add-on therapy to sitagliptin and metformin in Korean patients with inadequately controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus: A randomized controlled trial.Trial report · 2018
- Randomized Study of Metformin and Intensive Lifestyle Intervention on Cancer Incidence over 21 Years of Follow-up in the Diabetes Prevention Program.Trial report · 2025
- Antidiabetic Drugs and Prostate Cancer Prognosis in a Finnish Population-Based Cohort.Trial report · 2021
- Effect of Metformin on Vascular Function in Children With Type 1 Diabetes: A 12-Month Randomized Controlled Trial.Trial report · 2017
Trials
- A 24-week Phase III Randomized, Double-blind, Parallel Group Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of Twice Daily Oral Administration of Empagliflozin + Metformin Compared With the Individual Components of Empagliflozin or Metformin in Drug Naive Patients With Type 2 Diabetes MellitusNCT01719003 · 10 posted results
- A Phase 3, Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled, 26-week Multicenter Study With a 26-Week Extension to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of Ertugliflozin Monotherapy in the Treatment of Subjects With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Inadequate Glycemic Control Despite Diet and ExerciseNCT01958671 · 4 posted results
- A Randomized, Double-Blind, 5-Arm, Parallel-Group, 26-Week, Multicenter Study to Evaluate the Efficacy, Safety, and Tolerability of Canagliflozin in Combination With Metformin as Initial Combination Therapy in the Treatment of Subjects With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus With Inadequate Glycemic Control With Diet and ExerciseNCT01809327 · 9 posted results
- Medical Optimization of Management of Type 2 Diabetes Complicating PregnancyNCT02932475 · 5 posted results
- A Phase 3b, Double-Blind, Randomized Study to Determine the Efficacy and Safety of Pioglitazone HCl and Metformin HCl Fixed-Dose Combination Therapy Compared to Pioglitazone HCl Monotherapy and to Metformin HCl Monotherapy in the Treatment of Subjects With Type 2 DiabetesNCT00727857 · 3 posted results
- A Phase IIb, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Dose-Range Finding Clinical Trial to Study the Safety and Efficacy of MK-3102 in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Inadequate Glycemic ControlNCT01217073 · 12 posted results
- A Multicenter, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study to Determine the Efficacy and Safety of Alogliptin Plus Metformin, Alogliptin Alone, or Metformin Alone in Subjects With Type 2 DiabetesNCT01023581 · 4 posted results
- A Phase III, Multicenter, Double-Blind, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial to Evaluate the Safety and Efficacy of Sitagliptin in Pediatric Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus With Inadequate Glycemic ControlNCT01485614 · 11 posted results