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Repeated use of antibiotics linked to diabetes risk
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Past exposure to antibiotics may lead to an increased risk for developing type 2 diabetes, according to a large observational study published in the European Journal of Endocrinology.
The findings emphasize the need to reduce unnecessary antibiotic prescriptions, which can alter gut microbiota and increase risk for several metabolic conditions, including diabetes, according to the researchers.
“Overprescription of antibiotics is already a problem around the world as bacteria become increasingly resistant to their effects,” Ben Boursi, MD, a medical oncologist at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Israel, and research fellow at University of Pennsylvania, said in a press release. “Our findings are important, not only for understanding how diabetes may develop, but as a warning to reduce unnecessary antibiotic treatments that might do more harm than good.”
Boursi, with Yu-Xao Yang, MD, of the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and colleagues looked at the number of antibiotic prescriptions given out in the U.K. to more than 200,000 patients with diabetes at least one year before they were diagnosed with the disease, and compared this to the number given to 800,000 patients without diabetes of the same age and sex.
Yang and colleagues identified patients for a nested control-case study through The Health Improvement Network (THIN), a population-based database in the U.K. containing comprehensive medical records on approximately 10 million patients under the care of general practitioners in 570 practices. THIN includes information on patient demographics, socioeconomic status, medical diagnosis, lab results and drug prescriptions.
The researchers identified patients with diabetes who were prescribed courses of various antibiotics, including penicillin and quinolones. The risk was calculated after adjusting for other known risk factors such as obesity, smoking, heart disease and a history of infections.
The risk for diabetes increased 8% among patients prescribed between two and five courses of penicillin. For those prescribed more than five courses, the risk increased to 23%. For quinolones, diabetes risk increased by 15% among patients prescribed between two and five courses, with the number rising to 37% for patients prescribed more than five courses.
Exposure to a single antibiotic prescription was not associated with higher diabetes risk.
The findings echo previous studies in both animals and humans, which link the overuse of antibiotics with an increased risk for certain metabolic conditions.
The study showed no increase in risk associated with the use of antivirals or antifungal medications and did not link antibiotic use to the risk for type1 diabetes, according to the researchers.
“While our study does not show cause and effect, we think changing levels and diversity of gut bacteria could explain the link between antibiotics and diabetes risk,” Yang said in the release. – by Regina Schaffer
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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