Noninsulin Antihyperglycemic Agents for the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes

Course overview

A variety of noninsulin antihyperglycemic agents are currently available for the management of adults with type 2 diabetes. With many agents functioning at different sites (e.g., the pancreatic production of insulin, muscle sensitivity, slowing gastric emptying, and hepatic glucose regulation), combining agents often yields a more significant overall effect than one agent alone. The choice of antihyperglycemic agents is influenced by comorbidities, patient-centered treatment factors, and standards developed by various organizations with an intent to optimize cardiorenal risk reduction, body weight, and management of glycemia. It is important to remember that medications patients are taking at one point in time are not necessarily what they will be taking in the future. Categories of noninsulin antihyperglycemic agents and noninsulin injectables include biguanides, sulfonylureas, thiazolidinediones, meglitinides, alpha-glucosidase inhibitors, sodium glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i), glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP1 RA), glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) receptor and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists, and dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors. This course briefly introduces noninsulin antihyperglycemic agents and noninsulin injectables used to treat adults with type 2 diabetes.