Abstract
The incidence of adverse effects, including hypoglycemia, has been reported to be lower with dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP)-4 inhibitors than with other types of drug in diabetes therapy. However, the efficacy and safety of DPP-4 inhibitors in patients with hemodialysis remain unclear. Therefore, a DPP-4 inhibitor, vildagliptin, was administered to patients with hemodialysis by switching from insulin therapy. Twenty-one patients were switched from insulin to vildagliptin with/without other types of oral drug and were observed for 12 months. Vildagliptin therapy controlled the glycoalbumin levels similarly to those with insulin therapy. There were no cases of hypoglycemia in the patients with vildagliptin monotherapy. These results suggest that the switch from insulin to vildagliptin could be an option in patients with hemodialysis.
