Medicines for Treatment Intensification in Type 2 Diabetes and Type of Insulin in Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes in Low-Resource Settings: Synopsis of the World Health Organization Guidelines on Second- and Third-Line Medicines and Type of Insulin for the Control of Blood Glucose Levels in Nonpregnant Adults With Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Description: The World Health Organization developed these guidelines to provide guidance on selection of medicines for treatment intensification in type 2 diabetes and on use of insulin (human or analogue) in type 1 and 2 diabetes. The target audience includes clinicians, policymakers, national diabetes program managers, and medicine procurement officers. The target population is adults with type 1 or 2 diabetes in low-resource settings in low- or high-income countries. The guidelines also apply to disadvantaged populations in high-income countries.

Methods: The recommendations were formulated by a 12-member guideline development group and are based on high-quality systematic reviews identified via a search of several bibliographic databases from 1 January 2007 to 1 March 2017. The GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation) system was used to assess the quality of the evidence and the strength of the recommendations. The guideline was peer-reviewed by 6 external reviewers.

Recommendation 1: Give a sulfonylurea to patients with type 2 diabetes who do not achieve glycemic control with metformin alone or who have contraindications to metformin (strong recommendation, moderate-quality evidence).

Recommendation 2: Introduce human insulin treatment to patients with type 2 diabetes who do not achieve glycemic control with metformin and/or a sulfonylurea (strong recommendation, very-low-quality evidence).

Recommendation 3: If insulin is unsuitable, a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor, a sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitor, or a thiazolidinedione (TZD) may be added (weak recommendation, very-low-quality evidence).

Recommendation 4: Use human insulin to manage blood glucose in adults with type 1 diabetes and in adults with type 2 diabetes for whom insulin is indicated (strong recommendation, low-quality evidence).

Recommendation 5: Consider long-acting insulin analogues to manage blood glucose in adults with type 1 or type 2 diabetes who have frequent severe hypoglycemia with human insulin (weak recommendation, moderate-quality evidence for severe hypoglycemia).