Can glyburide be advocated over subcutaneous insulin for perinatal outcomes of women with gestational diabetes? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

PURPOSE: To obtain precise findings from published studies about the efficacy and safety of glyburide versus subcutaneous insulin in patients with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). METHODS: We searched PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Scopus, up to January 2019, for relevant studies that compared glyburide with subcutaneous insulin for patients with GDM. We extracted maternal and neonatal outcomes from included studies, performed meta-analysis, evaluated heterogeneity, assessed the risk of bias of included studies, and conducted subgroup and sensitivity analyses. RESULTS: A total of 24 studies (11 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and 13 observational cohort studies) with a total of 24,517 women were included in the present study. The pooled estimate showed that glyburide significantly decreased the need for cesarean section (OR = 0.87, 95% CI [0.82, 0.92], p < 0.0001), fasting blood glucose (MD - 5.63 mg/dL, 95% CI [- 10.97, - 0.28], p = 0.04), and Apgar score at 5 min (MD - 0.30, 95% CI [- 0.36, - 0.23], p < 0.001) than insulin. However, glyburide significantly increased the risk of neonatal hypoglycemia (OR = 1.42, 95% CI [1.03, 1.95], p = 0.03) and neonatal intensive care unit admission duration (NICU) (MD 4.26 days, 95% CI [2.65, 5.86], p < 0.01) compared to insulin. The overall results did not favor either group in terms of macrosomia (OR = 1.14, 95% CI [0.92, 1.41], p = 0.25) and large for gestational age (LGA) (OR = 1.38, 95% CI [0.99, 1.92], p = 0.06). While subgroup analysis of RCTs showed that maternal hypoglycemia and LGA rates were significantly higher in glyburide than insulin and cesarean section rates were comparable between both compared groups. CONCLUSION: Our study suggests that glyburide is an effective and well-tolerated drug compared to insulin in the management of women with GDM, provided neonates are monitored for hypoglycemia and Apgar score. In addition, glyburide was associated with lower cesarean sections, which may add to the potential clinically benefits of glyburide compared to insulin.

Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 expression and serum levels as markers of pre-clinical atherosclerosis in polycystic ovary syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common reproductive endocrine disorder characterized by obesity, hyperandrogenism, and insulin resistance. Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) is a proinflammatory and proatherogenic cytokine which is associated with atherosclerosis, insulin resistance, and cardiovascular disease (CVD). The pathogenesis of PCOS is not precisely known. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate the potential role of ICAM-1 expression and serum ICAM-1 concentrations in pathogenesis of PCOS. Moreover, we aimed to evaluate the possible relationship between ICAM-1 gene expression with carotid intima-media thickness as well as clinic-morphological features of PCOS. METHODS: This case control study enrolled 180 patients with PCOS and 120 controls groups and they were stratified according to their fasting plasma glucose (FPG) into three subgroups; normal glucose tolerance (NGT) [n = 75], those with impaired glucose tolerance (IGT) [n = 65], and 40 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Circulating ICAM-1 expression levels were determined by real time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Serum ICAM-1 concentrations were measured using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: Our results revealed that PCOS patients had higher values of ICAM-1expression and serum levels. Among PCOS patients, T2DM patients had the highest values of ICAM-1 expression and serum levels compared to IGT and NGT subgroups. The ICAM-1 expression and serum levels were significantly positive correlated with cardiovascular risk and PCOS phenotypes. Linear regression test showed that HOMA-IR was the main predictors of serum ICAM-1 levels in PCOS. Receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis revealed that, the power of ICAM-1 expression levels was higher than serum ICAM-1 in diagnosis of PCOS and in differentiating T2DM from IGT and NGT subgroups. Interestingly, combination of both ICAM-1 expression and serum levels improved the diagnostic role of serum ICAM-1. CONCLUSION: ICAM-1 expression and serum levels were higher in women with PCOS compared to control group also, there was a strong independent association between higher ICAM-1 expression and serum levels with cardiovascular risks in PCOS group.

Intra-umbilical vein injection of carbetocin versus oxytocin in the management of retained placenta.

INTRODUCTION: Retained placenta can be defined as lack of expulsion of the placenta within 30 min of delivery of the infant. It is a significant cause of maternal mortality and morbidity throughout the developing world. AIM OF THE WORK: The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy of intra-umbilical vein injection of carbetocin versus oxytocin in the management of retained placenta. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 200 women were included in this study. They were divided into two groups; each 100 women. The first group received intra-umbilical vein injection of 1 mL carbetocin (containing 100 µg carbetocin) diluted in 20 mL normal saline 0.9% and the second group received intra-umbilical vein injection of 20 IU oxytocin diluted in 20 mL normal saline 0.9%. RESULTS: Total blood loss (ml) and duration of the third stage of labor (minutes) were significantly lower in carbetocin group when compared to oxytocin group. Postoperative Hb concentration (g/dl) was significantly higher in carbetocin group. Also there was a highly significant difference between both groups as regard change in Hb concentration (g/dl) with less change in the carbetocin group. The need for additional uterotonic drugs following placental delivery and the occurrence of postpartum hemorrhage and the need for blood transfusion were significantly lower in the carbetocin group. CONCLUSION: Intra-umbilical carbetocin is more effective than intra-umbilical oytocin as a method for management of retained placenta. Intra-umbilical carbetocin seems to have more acceptable hemodynamic safety profile when compared to intra-umbilical oxytocin in the management of retained placenta.