METFORMIN USE AND THE RATES OF DEVELOPMENT OF GESTATIONAL DIABETES MELLITUS (GDM) IN POLYCYSTIC OVARY SYNDROME (PCOS) GRAVIDAE

Heralded as the “aspirin of the 21st century,” metformin’s role as an insulin sensitizer has expanded its clinical uses beyond Type 2 diabetes mellitus to include treatment for prediabetes mellitus, PCOS, and GDM [1]. However, metformin’s role in the treatment of pregnant women with PCOS and its effects on often accompanying pregnancy co-morbidities, such as GDM, remain uncertain [2]. Some studies have shown that in PCOS, use of metformin throughout pregnancy is associated with up to a 10-fold reduction in GDM [3] while others have shown metformin does not prevent gestational diabetes [4] but does result in higher rates of obesity and insulin resistance in the offspring [5,6].