Clinical studies of a generic drug called salsalate, widely prescribed for arthritis, now provide early promising results that it may be useful for the treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes as well.
Salsalate is an atypical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent that is chemically similar to aspirin but a bit easier on the stomach. In a three-month trial of people with type 2 diabetes that was led by Joslin Diabetes Center researchers, those who took the drug showed significantly improved blood glucose levels.
Starting off, the patients all had levels of hemoglobin A1C (a standard measurement that reflects blood sugar levels over several months) in the range of 7.0 to 9.5%. A significant number of those who took salsalate saw this number drop by 0.5%, a result that is in the range of several recently released diabetes therapeutics. Other tests related to glucose levels also showed substantial improvement.
"These results are exciting," says Allison Goldfine, M.D., Joslin's Director of Clinical Research and an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School. "They indicate that salsalate may provide an effective, safe and inexpensive new avenue for diabetes treatment. However, these findings are preliminary. Additional studies are ongoing. At this time we do not recommend patients use this medication for their diabetes treatment until further studies are completed."
"There is reason to think that salsalate also could have beneficial effects on atherosclerosis," Dr. Goldfine adds. In addition to better glucose control, patients who took salsalate saw lowered triglycerides and higher levels of adiponectin, a protein thought to aid against cardiac problems.
Overall the drug appeared to be safe and to be tolerated well by patients. The study included 108 individuals, aged from 18 to 75 years, at 17 clinical sites around the United States. Patients were randomly divided into four; three groups were each given differing amounts of salsalate in three daily doses, while the fourth received placebos. All patients continued with their current regimes for managing diabetes.
Results of the study, called TINSAL-T2D (for Targeting Inflammation using Salsalate in Type 2 Diabetes), were reported online on March 16 in the Annals of Internal Medicine, with Dr. Goldfine as first author.