METHODS

Data sources:

Medline (1966 to September 2002), EMBASE/Excerpta Medica (1974 to September 2002), CINAHL (1982 to September 2002), Web of Science (1981 to September 2002), Biosis (1970 to September 2002), International Pharmaceutical Abstracts (1970 to September 2002), Cochrane Library (Issue 3, 2002), Cochrane Register of Controlled Trials (Issue 3, 2002), key journals, bibliographies of relevant studies, and contact with experts and drug manufacturers.

Study selection and assessment:

published and unpublished studies that used pharmacotherapy as the primary strategy for weight loss in adults with type 2 diabetes and had weight as an outcome. The drugs evaluated were centrally acting appetite suppressants, drugs with a peripheral effect on appetite, drugs that affect nutrient partitioning, and drugs that increase thermogenesis. Drugs withdrawn from the US market or unavailable in the US, investigational drugs and dietary supplements, and metformin and acarbose were excluded. Studies were assessed for quality.

Outcomes:

changes in weight and glycated haemoglobin concentrations.

MAIN RESULTS

59 studies met the inclusion criteria. 14 …