Most clinical trials for new diabetes drugs do not consider the impact medication will have on a patient’s quality of life or other outcomes that are important to patients, such as the risk of developing complications associated with diabetes, according to a Mayo Clinic commentary in the current issue of The Lancet. Rather, drug trials focus on the effect of a particular medication on blood sugar levels. The result is smaller, shorter and cheaper trials that lead to more drug choices more quickly, but are not necessarily better or safer for patients.
