The impact of prandial glucose regulation in practice

Post-prandial hyperglycaemia, which occurs early in the development of impaired glucose tolerance and Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), has been receiving increased attention recently. Post-prandial hyperglycaemia is likely to promote or aggravate fasting hyperglycaemia and contributes entirely to HbA1c elevation, which is associated with microvascular and macrovascular complications in people with T2DM. Moreover, post-prandial hyperglycaemia is coupled with coagulation activation and may be associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in people with or without diabetes. For these reasons, reduction of post-prandial hyperglycaemia is an important target in patients with impaired glucose tolerance or T2DM. Several treatments have therefore been developed to reduce post-prandial hyperglycaemia; of these, repaglinide, a prandial glucose regulator taken orally before each meal, is now available. Drugs that reduce post-prandial hyperglycaemia significantly also decrease HbA1c (up to 2% with repaglinide) and fasting glucose concentrations (up to 3.9 mmol/l with repaglinide), with consequent decreases in coagulation activation and, in some studies, post-prandial lipidaemia. In clinical trials in patients with T2DM, repaglinide significantly reduced 2-hr post-prandial glucose concentrations and significantly reduced the risk of hypoglycaemia, compared with sulphonylureas, especially when participants missed or postponed a meal. Treatment with the prandial glucose regulator repaglinide allows patients with T2DM to have a more flexible lifestyle, which is likely to improve their quality of life and compliance.