Facts about combination therapy in NIDDM: insulin + oral antidiabetic agents

Recent recommendations in textbooks suggest the use of the combination of insulin treatment with oral antidiabetic agents in NIDDM, especially in secondary failures and insulin resistance with exogenous insulin. This new view in treatment policy is based on literature data in C-peptide positive IDDM patients. Better metabolic control with lower exogenous insulin dosages could also be obtained in NIDDM. If no medical contraindication for drug treatment exists (liver or renal insufficiency, drug interactions, etc.), a combination therapy trial can be considered as an intermediate step between oral antidiabetic agents alone and insulin as monotherapy. Long-term maintenance of endogenous secretion and limited peripheral hyperinsulinism can be considered as potential benefits of this combination therapy.