Research progress on metformin in the prevention and treatment for oral diseases

Metformin is currently the first-line drug for the treatment of diabetes. In addition to its hypoglycemic effect, it has also been found to have other potential effects, such as anti-inflammatory, odontogenic differentiation-promoting, osteogenic differentiation-promoting, and antitumor effects. Previous studies have shown that metformin can promote the healing of periapical lesions, and its mechanism may be related to the promotion of osteogenic differentiation and the induction of dental pulp cell differentiation by activation of adenylate-activated protein kinase by dimethyldiphosphate. Clinical indexes, such as the probing depth, attachment loss level and probing bleeding index, were significantly improved in patients with periodontitis treated with metformin, which may play a role in the prevention and treatment of periodontal disease by promoting the proliferation, migration and osteogenic differentiation of periodontal ligament stem cells. Metformin has been proven to inhibit the growth and proliferation of tumor cells and plays an important role in the prevention and treatment of oral tumors such as oral squamous cell carcinoma. At present, research remains in the in vitro and animal experimental stage, and the related mechanism needs to be further explored. Clinical trials remain in the evaluation of clinical indicators, so large-scale, long-term, multicenter, randomized controlled clinical trials need to be further developed.