Glitazones, a class of type 2 diabetes drug also called thiazolidinedione or TZDs has a link with reducing the risk of dementia by 22%. The study was revealed and published in the journal BMJ Open Diabetes Research and Care.
The drug may prevent dementia in patients with a high risk of mild to moderate type 2 diabetes. Hence, the researchers suggest it is worth prioritizing future clinical trials or studies to see if repurposing the drug is possible.
Moreover, type 2 diabetes and dementia share similar physiological patterns. Because of this, researchers have started observing whether diabetes drugs may also help treat dementia. However, the findings have been inconsistent to date.
For shedding further light on this, the researchers compared the risk of dementia in older adults with type 2 diabetes treated with sulfonylurea or thiazolidinedione to those treated with just metformin. They looked at the electronic health records of 559,106 people with type 2 diabetes from the VA Health System. The records spanned from January 2000 to December 2019.
Only older patients with a first prescription of metformin or sulfonylurea or thiazolidinedione between January 2001 and December 2017 had been included in the study. Moreover, their health was tracked for approximately eight years.
Results of the Study
After at least a year of treatment, only TZD had an association with 22% lower dementia in contrast to the use of metformin alone.
Moreover, it was associated with an 11% lower risk of Alzheimer’s specifically and a 57% lower risk of vascular dementia. Keeping in consideration that vascular disease increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, TZDs can also help reduce dementia and Alzheimer’s through the favourable effects on the vascular system.
Other than that, although the risk of dementia was 11% lower with a combination of metformin and TZD, it was higher with just sulfonylurea drug. It prompted the researchers that starting sulfonylurea with either metformin or TZD can offset the effects partially.
Further analysis that patients younger than 75 benefited from TZD compared to older patients. This highlighted the importance of early prevention for dementia. Moreover, the drugs were more protective in overweight patients as well. However, this is an observational study. Hence no definitive conclusions can be drawn regarding the effect and cause.
The researchers said,
These findings may help inform medication selection for [older] patients with [type 2 diabetes] at high risk of dementia
