Researchers recently attempted to determine all cause mortality and deaths from cardiovascular events related to intensive glucose lowering treatment in people with type 2 diabetes. They analyzed 13 studies which together included more than 34,500 patients, which initially seemed to show that the treatment was associated with reductions in the risk of non-fatal myocardial infarction and microalbuminuria, although this came with a more than twofold increase in the risk of severe hypoglycemia.
However, when the analysis was restricted only to high quality studies, intensive treatment was not associated with any significant risk reductions, and in fact was shown to result in a 47% increase in risk of congestive heart failure.
According to the study, as reprinted on the website Green Med Info:
“The overall results of this meta-analysis show limited benefits of intensive glucose lowering treatment ... The harm associated with severe hypoglycemia might counterbalance the potential benefit of intensive glucose lowering treatment.”