Thiazolidinedione effects on blood pressure in diabetic patients with metabolic syndrome treated with glimepiride

The aim of our study was to compare the long-term effect of pioglitazone and rosiglitazone on blood pressure control of diabetic patients with metabolic syndrome treated with glimepiride. We evaluated 91 type 2 diabetic patients with metabolic syndrome. All were required to have been diagnosed as diabetic for at least 6 months, and to have failed to achieve glycemic control by dietary changes and the maximum tolerated dose of the oral hypoglycemic agents sulfonylureas or metformin. All patients took a fixed dose of 4 mg/day glimepiride. We administered pioglitazone (15 mg/day) or rosiglitazone (4 mg/day) for 12 months in a randomized, double-blind fashion, and evaluated body mass index (BMI), glycemic control, blood pressure and heart rate (HR) throughout the treatment period. A total of 87 patients completed the study and were randomized to receive double-blind treatment with pioglitazone or rosiglitazone. An increase in BMI was observed after 12 months (p < 0.05) in both groups. After 9 and 12 months, there were significant decreases in glycated hemoglobin (HbA(1c)), mean fasting plasma glucose (FPG), postprandial plasma glucose (PPG), fasting plasma insulin (FPI), and postprandial plasma insulin (PPI) in both treatment groups (p < 0.05 at 9 months and p < 0.01 at 12 months for all parameters). Furthermore, homeostasis model assessment index (HOMA index) improvement was obtained at 9 and 12 months (p < 0.05 and p < 0.01, respectively) in both groups. Significant systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) improvement (p < 0.05, respectively) was observed in both groups after 12 months. There were no significant changes in transaminases at any point during the study. We can conclude that the association of a thiazolinedione to the glimepiride treatment of type 2 diabetic subjects with metabolic syndrome is associated to a significant improvement in the long-term blood pressure control, related to a reduction in insulin-resistance.