Diabetes cocktail recommended for Type 2

SAN FRANCISCO, June 9 (UPI) -- A leading U.S. diabetes researcher said patients with Type 2 diabetes should be treated from the start with a powerful drug cocktail.

Dr. Ralph DeFronzo, chief of the diabetes division at the University of Texas Health Science Center, said current American Diabetes Association recommendations of diet and exercise changes combined with the drug metformin to lower blood sugar, don't do enough to keep patients healthy, the San Antonio Express-News reported.

DeFronzo, in the keynote address Sunday to the ADA's 68th annual Scientific Sessions, said starting patients on a combination of metformin, pioglitazone and exenatide protects insulin-producing cells and makes the body more sensitive to insulin.

Most insurers, however, won't cover the cocktail until it is part of accepted guidelines, DeFronzo said.

Dr. John Buse, the ADA's president for medicine and science, said a large study comparing the two treatments would have to be conducted before guidelines would be changed.

"I think it's a bold hypothesis," Buse told the newspaper. "I'd even venture to say he may very well be right. But to strongly recommend everybody in America be treated this way, the costs would be enormous."