Does metformin use reduce the risk of developing varicose veins in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus ?
A recent study has investigated this in a population-based retrospective cohort study. The study was performed in Taiwan from a unmatched cohort and a cohort of 1:1 propensity score (PS)-matched pairs of ever and never users of metformin in type 2 diabetes patient.
The retrospective data was collected from Taiwan's National Health Insurance database for patients diagnosed between 1999 and 2005 and followed until the study was completed in 2011.
The results were very conclusive and can be summarized as "metformin use is associated with a lower risk of varicose veins in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus".
This is the first and only study published showing a clear benefit in reducing the likelihood of developing varicose veins in a type 2 diabetes cohort.
The study was published from the Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University College of Medicine, Taipei, Taiwan; Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, National Taiwan University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; and the Division of Environmental Health and Occupational Medicine, National Health Research Institutes, Zhunan, Taiwan.
The study was published by Tseng Chian-Tsiao. Metformin Reduces risk of varicose veins in patients with type-2 diabetes. Diabetes Metab Res Rev 2020; 36(2):e3206.