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Metformin is FDA approved for treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus in children over 10 years of age, but is used off-label to treat obesity. Investigators performed a systematic review of randomized controlled trials assessing metformin's effect in treating obese or overweight children without diabetes.
Of 75 studies published from 1996 to 2012, 14 were included in the analysis (3 were considered good quality, 9 fair, and 2 poor). The studies enrolled a total of 946 children with mean ages ranging from 10 to 16 and mean baseline body-mass indexes (BMIs) ranging from 26 to 41 kg/mm2(pooled mean, 34 kg/mm2). Duration of follow-up was <6 months in four studies, 6 months in eight, and ≥12 months in two. In all but one study, children in the met…