Study Supports Diabetes Drug Metformin as a COVID-19 Treatment – Everyday Health

Metformin, a decades-old generic drug for type 2 diabetes, may also help treat COVID-19, a new study suggests.

Scientists at the University of Minnesota randomly assigned more than 1,300 adults with COVID-19 to take metformin or a placebo pill. All of the participants took nasal swab tests for viral levels after 1, 5, and 10 days.

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Among the key research results:

The results of the study are important because COVID-19 continues to cause illness, both during acute infection and for months after infection, says lead study authorCarolyn Bramante, MD, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Minnesota.

The metformin study wasnt designed to figure out why or how this diabetes treatment might tamp down the coronavirus. But the drug blocks activity of a protein known as mTOR, Dr. Bramante says. This protein plays a role in cell growth and reproduction and impacts immune responses.

We hypothesized that metformins inhibition of mTOR may cause a reduction in SARS-CoV-2, the specific type of coronavirus that causes COVID-19, Bramante says.

However, the possible benefits of metformin as a COVID-19 treatment arent yet clear, with previous studies yielding conflicting results.

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The shorter duration of viral shedding, the shorter the duration of potential contagiousness and transmission risk, Dr. Siedner says.

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Based on the data we have now, I would not personally prescribe metformin for treatment of COVID-19, nor would I recommend its use, Siedner says.

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Study Supports Diabetes Drug Metformin as a COVID-19 Treatment - Everyday Health