Page 7 - IMO-2-1

Innovative Medicines & Omics

REVIEW ARTICLE
Incretin mimetics for the management of

diabetes and associated comorbidities: An
overview

4,5
1
Faryal Haider , Syed M. Imam , Orien L. Tulp , and Syed A. A. Rizvi *
2
3
1 The Wright Center for Graduate Medical Education, Scranton, Pennsylvania, United States of
America
2 HCA Florida Northside Hospital–USF Morsani College of Medicine, St. Petersburg, Florida, United
States of America
3 Colleges of Medicine and Graduate Studies, University of Science, Arts and Technology, Montserrat,
British West Indies
4 College of Biomedical Sciences, Larkin University, Miami, Florida, United States of America
5 Division of Clinical and Translational Research, Larkin Community Hospital, Miami, Florida, United
States of America

Abstract

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is commonly associated with various comorbidities that
aggravate the disease’s overall impact on health. The most prevalent comorbidities
of diabetes include obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension, cardiovascular conditions,
*Corresponding author: and kidney diseases. Incretin mimetics, also known as glucagon-like peptide-1
Syed A. A. Rizvi receptor agonists, mimic incretin hormones to stimulate insulin release in response
(srizvi@larkin.edu/srizvi@ to food intake. These medications help lower blood glucose by increasing insulin
larkinhospital.com)
production, reducing glucagon secretion, slowing stomach emptying, and
Citation: Haider F, Imam SM, promoting satiety. A key advantage of incretin mimetics is their ability to reduce
Tulp OL, Rizvi SAA. Incretin
mimetics for the management blood glucose levels without causing hypoglycemia, making them a safer option
of diabetes and associated for many patients. They also promote weight loss, which is particularly beneficial
comorbidities: An overview. Innov for patients with both obesity and diabetes. Incretin mimetics are typically
Med Omics. 2025;2(1):1-18.
doi: 10.36922/imo.4911 administered once or twice daily and are often used in combination with other
treatments such as metformin or insulin. Evidence suggests that these drugs may
Received: September 23, 2024 reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke, an important consideration given the
Revised: October 28, 2024
Accepted: October 30, 2024 heightened cardiovascular risk in patients with diabetes. Additionally, incretin
Published online: November 22, mimetics may help preserve pancreatic beta-cell function, potentially slowing the
2024 progression of diabetes. However, these drugs are costly and may be unaffordable
Copyright: © 2024 Author(s). for low-income individuals. Commonly reported side effects include nausea,
This is an Open-Access article vomiting, and diarrhea, which tend to decrease over time. While there have
distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution been reports of pancreatitis, current research indicates that incretin mimetics do
License, permitting distribution, not increase the risk of pancreatic cancer. Educating patients on proper use and
and reproduction in any medium, potential side effects is crucial to ensure safe and effective treatment with incretin
provided the original work is
properly cited. mimetics.
Publisher’s Note: AccScience
Publishing remains neutral with Keywords: Diabetes; Obesity; Cardiovascular and kidney diseases; Incretin hormones;
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist; Gastric inhibitory peptide; Incretin mimetics
affiliations.

Volume 2 Issue 1 (2025) 1 doi: 10.36922/imo.4911