The diabetes drug metformin may protect against the development of age-related macular degeneration, a common cause of blindness that to date has no effective preventive measures, according to researchers.

The findings come from a large, case-control study of data from U.S. insurance claims. Participants aged 55 years and older with newly diagnosed AMD were matched with a control group.

Metformin, commonly used to help manage blood sugar in diabetes, has been shown to protect against age-related disease, and reduce the odds of cardiovascular events. When investigators examined metformin dosage and exposure to other prescribed medications in the study population, the drug’s use was associated with decreased odds of developing AMD, reported lead author Dimitra Skondra, M.D., Ph.D, of the University of Chicago Medical Center….

Read more: https://www.mcknights.com/news/clinical-news/metformin-may-prevent-a-common-cause-of-vision-loss-in-aging/

Source: McKnights

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