Diabetes remission and relapse following an intensive metabolic intervention combining insulin glargine/lixisenatide, metformin and lifestyle approaches: Results of a randomised controlled trial.

AIM: Non-surgical options for inducing type 2 diabetes remission are limited. We examined whether remission can be achieved by combining lifestyle approaches and short-term intensive glucose-lowering therapy. METHODS: In this trial, 160 patients with type 2 diabetes on none to two diabetes medications other than insulin were randomised to (a) an intervention comprising lifestyle approaches, insulin glargine/lixisenatide and metformin, or (b) standard care. Participants with glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) <7.3% (56 mmol/mol) at 12 weeks were asked to stop diabetes medications and were followed for an additional 52 weeks. The primary outcome was diabetes relapse defined as HbA1c ≥6.5% (48 mmol/mol) at 24 weeks or thereafter, capillary glucose ≥10 mmol/L on ≥50% of readings, or use of diabetes medications, analysed as time-to-event. Main secondary outcomes included complete or partial diabetes remission at 24, 36, 48 and 64 weeks defined as HbA1c <6.5% (48 mmol/mol) off diabetes medications since 12 weeks after randomisation. A hierarchical testing strategy was applied. RESULTS: The intervention significantly reduced the hazard of diabetes relapse by 43% (adjusted hazard ratio 0.57, 95% confidence interval 0.40-0.81; p = .002). Complete or partial diabetes remission was achieved in 30 (38.0%) intervention group participants versus 16 (19.8%) controls at 24 weeks and 25 (31.6%) versus 14 (17.3%) at 36 weeks [relative risk 1.92 (95% confidence interval 1.14-3.24) and 1.83 (1.03-3.26), respectively]. The relative risk of diabetes remission in the intervention versus control group was 1.88 (1.00-3.53) at 48 weeks and 2.05 (0.98-4.29) at 64 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: A 12-week intensive intervention comprising insulin glargine/lixisenatide, metformin and lifestyle approaches can induce remission of diabetes.

Remission of Type 2 Diabetes Following a Short-term Intensive Intervention With Insulin Glargine, Sitagliptin, and Metformin: Results of an Open-label Randomized Parallel-Design Trial.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to evaluate remission of type 2 diabetes following a short-term intervention with insulin glargine, sitagliptin/metformin, and lifestyle approaches. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: In this open multicenter trial, 102 patients with type 2 diabetes were randomized to 1) a 12-week intervention with sitagliptin/metformin, insulin glargine, and lifestyle therapy or 2) control group. Participants with HbA1c <7.3% (<56 mmol/mol) at 12 weeks were asked to stop diabetes medications and were followed for evidence of relapse over 52 weeks. Diabetes relapse criteria included HbA1c ≥6.5% (≥48 mmol/mol), ≥50% of capillary glucose readings >10 mmol/L over 1 week, and reinitiation of diabetes medications with or without abnormal fasting plasma glucose (FPG) or 2-h plasma glucose on an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Time-to-relapse analysis was conducted to compare the treatment groups with (primary analysis) and without (supplementary analysis) FPG/OGTT relapse criteria. RESULTS: With the FPG/OGTT relapse criteria included, the hazard ratio (HR) of relapse was 0.72 (95% CI 0.47-1.10) in the intervention group compared with the control group (primary analysis), and the number of participants remaining in remission was not significantly different between treatment groups at 24, 36, 48, and 64 weeks. In the supplementary analyses without these criteria, HR of relapse was 0.60 (95% CI 0.39-0.95), and the number of participants remaining in remission was significantly higher (26 vs. 10%) in the intervention group at 36 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: Although our primary outcome was not statistically significant, the tested approach deserves further study with further optimization of its components.

Piloting a Remission Strategy in Type 2 Diabetes: Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Context: Medical strategies targeting remission of type 2 diabetes have not been systematically studied. Objective: This trial assessed the feasibility, safety, and potential to induce remission of a short-term intensive metabolic strategy. Design: A randomized, parallel, open-label pilot trial with 83 participants followed for 52 weeks. Setting: Ambulatory care. Participants: Patients with type 2 diabetes of up to 3 years in duration. Interventions: Participants were randomized to: (1) an 8-week intensive metabolic intervention, (2) a 16-week intensive metabolic intervention, or (3) standard diabetes care. During the intensive intervention period, weight loss and normoglycemia were targeted using lifestyle approaches and treatment with metformin, acarbose, and insulin glargine. Diabetes drugs were then discontinued in the intervention groups and participants were followed for hyperglycemic relapse. Primary Outcome: On-treatment normoglycemia. Results: At 8 weeks, 50.0% of the 8-week intervention group vs 3.6% of controls achieved normoglycemia on therapy [relative risk (RR), 14.0; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.97 to 99.38), and at 16 weeks, these percentages were 70.4% in the 16-week group and 3.6% in controls (RR, 19.7; 95% CI, 2.83 to 137.13). Twelve weeks after completion of the intervention, 21.4% of the 8-week group compared with 10.7% of controls (RR, 2.00; 95% CI, 0.55 to 7.22) and 40.7% of the 16-week group compared with 14.3% of controls (RR, 2.85; 95% CI, 1.03 to 7.87) met hemoglobin A1C criteria for complete or partial diabetes remission. Conclusions: A short course of intensive lifestyle and drug therapy achieves on-treatment normoglycemia and promotes sustained weight loss. It may also achieve prolonged, drug-free diabetes remission and strongly supports ongoing studies of novel medical regimens targeting remission.