(HealthDay News) — After severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection, prevalent metformin use is associated with a slightly lower incidence of death or postacute sequalae of SARS-CoV-2 (PASC), according to a study published online Sept. 17 in Diabetes Care.
Steven G. Johnson, PhD, from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, and colleagues conducted a retrospective cohort analysis using N3C and PCORnet electronic health record databases to examine the incidence of PASC among metformin-exposed individuals versus individuals taking other diabetes medications. PASC was defined in two ways: PASC-U09.9, which was a U09.9 diagnosis code within 180 days of the index event, and by computable phenotype in each dataset (PASC-N3C and PASC-PCORnet).
The researchers found that the hazard ratio for death or PASC-U09.9 was 0.79 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.71 to 0.88), and the hazard ratio for death or PASC-N3C was 0.85 (95% CI, 0.78 to 0.92) in the N3C database. The hazard ratio for death or PASC-U09.9 was 0.87 (95% CI, 0.66 to 1.14), and the hazard ratio for death or PASC-PCORnet was 1.04 (95% CI, 0.97 to 1.11) in PCORnet. By diagnosis code, incident PASC was 1.6 versus 2.0% for metformin and comparator in the N3C, and 2.1 versus 2.5% in PCORnet. By computable phenotype, incidence was 4.8 and 5.2%for metformin and comparator in N3C, respectively, and was 24.7 versus 26.1% in PCORnet.
“These data support a mildly beneficial role of metformin on chronic SARS-CoV-2 outcomes in people with diabetes,” the authors write.
Several authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry.
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