Investigation of adverse drug reactions related to Metformin use in patients of Type 2 Diabetes mellitus in a Tertiary care hospital in Kolkata, West Bengal, India.

Metformin is one of the most widely used oral anti-diabetic drugs currently considered to be one of the first-choice drugs for Type 2 Diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, some adverse drug reactions (ADRs) were frequently observed with the treatment with Metformin and its combinations. This study was planned to investigate the ADR profile of Metformin in Type 2 Diabetes mellitus patients attending diabetic Out Patient Department (OPD) of a Tertiary care hospital, Kolkata. An observational cross sectional study with diagnosed cases of Type 2 Diabetes mellitus both male and female, with age group 30-60 years were randomly selected. Present study data revealed that, 61.60% (154) out of 250 patients within age of 46-50 yrs had experienced maximum adverse drug reactions where majorities belonged to female 70.12%. Occurrence of hyper acidity and flatulence (61.03%) was high in patients treated with Metformin and its combinations, followed by weakness (29.87%), dizziness (28.57%) and bodyache (20.77%) are other adverse reactions present in majority of patients. Special attention must be provided by the medical professionals to prevent the possible occurrence of ADRs in the patients treated with Metformin and its combinations. This may improve the adherence of Metformin by reducing the prevalence of Metformin-induced ADRs.