Effects of Sulfonylureas and Dipeptidyl Peptidase 4 Inhibitors on Percentage Body Fat Change in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Patients on Metformin at 4 and 12 Weeks

Introduction Anti-diabetic drugs used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) have a unique effect on the body weight and fat distribution of a patient. This study aimed to find out the change in percentage body fat and body composition with the addition of sulfonylureas or dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) inhibitors to metformin monotherapy. Methods An observational 12-week follow-up study was conducted with a sample size of 52 patients. All patients enrolled in the study were evaluated for baseline percentage body fat and body composition parameters including total body weight, total body water, and skeletal muscle mass using the ACCUNIQ BC300, added on to either sulfonylureas or DPP-4 inhibitors over a stable dose of metformin; repeat assessment performed at 4 weeks and 12 weeks, and change in values was noted. Results Of the 52 patients, 28 patients were on sulfonylureas and 24 were on DPP-4 inhibitors. In the sulfonylurea group, there was an increase in percentage body fat from 31.97 ± 8.77% at baseline to 32.65 ± 8.94% at 12 weeks (p = 0.041), while in the DPP-4 inhibitor group, there was a decrease in percentage body fat from 31.87 ± 7.41% at baseline to 31.24 ± 8.5% at 12 weeks (p = 0.102). In the sulfonylurea group, there was a decrease in body weight from 67.25 ± 14.79 kilograms (kg) at baseline to 66.97 ± 14.62 kg at 12 weeks (p = 0.429). In the DPP-4 inhibitor group, there was a decrease in body weight from 66.56 ± 10.82 kg at baseline to 65.76 ± 12.56 kg at 12 weeks (p = 0.079). In the sulfonylurea group, total body water decreased from 32.54 ± 6.65 L at baseline to 32.06 ± 6.51 L at 12 weeks (p = 0.084), while in the DPP-4 inhibitor group, the total body water decreased from 32.46 ± 5.39 L at baseline to 32.18 ± 5.48 L at 12 weeks (p = 0.741). Skeletal muscle mass decreased from 24.78 ± 5.12 kg to 24.4 ± 5.04 kg (p = 0.041) in the sulfonylurea group and from 24.74 ± 4.2 kg to 24.53 ± 4.25 kg (p = 0.666) in the DPP-4 inhibitor group. Conclusion Our study shows that sulfonylureas are associated with an increase in percentage body fat, while there were no significant changes associated with DPP-4 inhibitors when given in addition to metformin. There are no significant changes in body weight associated with sulfonylureas or DPP-4 inhibitors in addition to metformin. Also, sulfonylureas are associated with a decrease in skeletal muscle mass after 12 weeks.