Abstract
The effects of exercise on metabolic control in type II diabetic patients given glimepiride or glibenclamide were studied in a multinational phase II clinical trial (14 centers in 4 countries). A total of 167 type II diabetic out-patients (117 men, 50 women) completed the trial as planned. The study was of parallel group, 2 × 2 factorial design: patients were first stabilized in a randomized, double-blind manner on 3 mg of glimepiride or 10 mg of glibenclamide treatmentonce dailyover 14 - 28 days and were then assigned in randomized open fashion to a group with or without exercise. Exercise consisted of riding a bicycle ergometer for 1 hour at pulse rate 120 beats per minute. Three-hour blood glucose, insulin, and C-peptide profiles were made after the stabilization phase (baseline profiles) and 7 days later with or without exercise (endpoint profiles). Pairwise comparisons of changes in blood glucose AUC/1-3 h revealed a statistically significant decrease in patients who exercised vs those who did not, which was comparable for both sulfonylureas used. There was a statistically significant decrease in C-peptide AUC/1-3 h and insulin AUC/1-3 h in the glimepiride exercise group vs the glimepiride group without exercise. Physical exercise did not lead to statistically significant changes in C-peptide AUC/1-3 h and insulin AUC/1-3 h under glibenclamide treatment. In conclusion, a blood-glucose-lowering response to acute exercise was demonstrated in type II diabetic patients treated with either sulfonylurea, but a significant suppression of endogenous insulin secretion was observed for glimepiride only.
Key words
Diabetes Mellitus - Type II Diabetes - Exercise - Sulfonylurea - Glimepiride - Glibenclamide
