Li C, Hung YJ, Qamruddin K et al.
Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.
Diabetes Res Clin Pract 2011;92:57–64.
[2] Evaluation of efficacy of acarbose on glucose fluctuation and postprandial glucose using continuous glucose monitoring in type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Mori Y, Shiozaki M, Matsuura K et al.
Jikei University Daisan Hospital, Komae, Tokyo, Japan.
Diabetes Technol Ther 2011;13:467–70.
Editor’s note: When is a study not a study? In the title of the publication by Li et al. [1], the study is described as a “noninterventional study of acarbose treatment”. However, in the text, the study is described as a “prospective, non-controlled, observational study”. The objective of this first study was to assess the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of acarbose during daily-life treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes. No ethical review or consent was obtained, as it is described as data collected during routine prescribing of acarbose. A key piece of information that is missing is funding. Local project managers were provided, and we can presume that individual clinicians were paid for data collection by the sponsor. The potential for bias is great and comments on efficacy, in terms of glycated hemoglobin, safety, or tolerability may be somewhat biased. This publication is somewhat lacking in validity.