Treatment options for type 2 diabetes:introducing the incretin‐based therapies

In type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), glycaemic control is often difficult to maintain and current treatments can produce adverse effects. The incretin‐based therapies—dipeptidyl peptidase‐4 inhibitors and glucagon‐like peptide‐1 (GLP‐1) agonists—improve glycaemic control when added to conventional therapies and are well tolerated, with a low incidence of hypoglycaemia. In addition, the GLP‐1 agonists reduce body weight and systolic blood pressure and improve surrogates of β‐cell function. Incretin‐based therapies may be appropriate for selected patients with T2DM when first‐line therapy does not maintain glycaemic control, particularly where weight gain or hypoglycaemia are a concern. Copyright ©2009 John Wiley & Sons.