Oral hypoglycemic agents in pregnancy: their time has come.
Oral agents are the mainstay of pharmacological treatment for non-pregnant women with type 2 diabetes. It has been proposed that, owing to the similarity between gestational and type 2 diabetes, some of these drugs could be used effectively and safely as alternatives to insulin therapy. This efficacious alternative provides the physician with more choices that, in turn, translate into more complex decision-making for the management of gestational diabetes. This article illustrates the pharmacological characteristics of oral hypoglycemic agents and placental transfer, provides evidence for the lack of association between congenital anomalies and the drugs, and reviews current studies and the clinical outcomes when these drugs are used.
Langer
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Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, New York 10019, USA.
D000284:Administration, Oral; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016640:Diabetes, Gestational / Q000188:drug therapy*; D005314:Embryonic and Fetal Development / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000145:classification; D008431:Maternal-Fetal Exchange / Q000187:drug effects; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011254:Pregnancy in Diabetics / Q000188:drug therapy*
D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents