North America Biguanide Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

North America Biguanide Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The North American Biguanide Market is set to witness a CAGR of more than 2%, during the forecast period 2022-2027. The market is estimated to reach a value of more than USD 1.3 billion by 2027.

The COVID-19 pandemic positively impacted the North American Biguanide Market. Diabetes and uncontrolled hyperglycemia are risk factors for poor outcomes in patients with COVID-19 including an increased risk of severe illness or death. People with diabetes have a weaker immune system, the COVID-19 complication aggravates the condition, and the immune system gets weaker very fast. People with diabetes have more chances to get into serious complications rather than normal people.

Biguanides are a class of medications used to treat type 2 diabetes. They work by reducing the production of glucose that occurs during digestion. Metformin is the only biguanide currently available in most countries for treating diabetes. Glucophage (metformin) and Glucophage XR (metformin extended release) are well-known brand names for these drugs. Others include Fortamet, Glumetza, and Riomet. Metformin is also available in combination with several other types of diabetes medications, such as sulfonylureas.

As Type 2 diabetes is associated with both poorer clinical outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic and an increased risk of death in such hospitalized patients, the role of glucose control has been emphasized to improve the prognosis. Metformin is the first-line choice for the management of hyperglycemia in T2DM. Besides being an important glucose-lowering agent, metformin also has significant anti-inflammatory. Therefore, metformin has been a potential candidate for treating patients affected by COVID-19 infection, with type 2 diabetes, as well as an excellent antidiabetic (glucose-lowering) agent during COVID-19 pandemic times.

In North America, till April 2022, the United States is having the highest COVID cases around 82 million, the country also registered the highest death rate. According to the Diabetes Voice article published in May 2020, close to 40,000 deaths of people who are having diabetes. Pandemic emergency has created a rise in remote care from both patients and providers and removed many long-standing regulatory barriers.

The North American region had witnessed an alarming increase in the prevalence of diabetes, in recent years. In developed countries, such as the United States and Canada, the rate of diabetes is at an all-time high, mainly due to lifestyle changes. Diabetes is associated with many health complications. Patients with diabetes require many corrections throughout the day for maintaining nominal blood glucose levels, such as the administration of additional insulin or ingestion of additional carbohydrates by monitoring their blood glucose levels.

Therefore, owing to the aforementioned factors the studied market is anticipated to witness growth over the analysis period.

Key Market TrendsRising diabetes prevalence in forecast period.

The diabetes population in the North American region is expected to rise by more than 1% during the forecast period.

The North American region had witnessed an alarming increase in the prevalence of diabetes, in recent years. In developed countries, such as the United States and Canada, the rate of diabetes is at an all-time high, mainly due to lifestyle changes. Diabetes is associated with many health complications. Patients with diabetes require many corrections throughout the day for maintaining nominal blood glucose levels, such as oral anti-diabetic medication or ingestion of additional carbohydrates by monitoring their blood glucose levels.

According to the Division of Metabolism and Endocrinology Products in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, “Patients want effective treatment options for diabetes that are as minimally intrusive on their lives as possible, and the FDA welcomes the advancement of new therapeutic options that can make it easier for patients to control their condition”. Metformin is typically the first medication used in the treatment of type 2 diabetes due to its wide range of efficacy, safety, and mechanisms of action.

In July 2022, Zydus Lifesciences announced that it has received final approval from the USFDA to market Empagliflozin and Metformin Hydrochloride tablets in multiple strengths. Empagliflozin and Metformin Hydrochloride tablets are used with proper diet and exercise to improve glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus. They are also used to lower the risk of cardiovascular death in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and established cardiovascular disease.

Diabetes medications are covered by most health insurance plans because they are considered medically necessary. Medicare generally covers diabetes medications. The American Diabetes Association has a guide to Medicare and diabetes prescription drug benefits. For patients covered by insurance, typical out-of-pocket costs consist of a prescription drug copay ranging from USD 10 to USD 50, depending on the drug. If the patient takes multiple drugs, copays can total USD 200 a month or more.

Owing to the rising rate of obesity, growing genetic factors for type-2 diabetes, the increasing prevalence, and the aforementioned factors it is likely that the market will continue to grow.

Canada is Expected to Dominate the North America Biguanide Market

Canada holds the highest market share in the North American Biguanide Market and is also expected to register a CAGR of around 2% in the forecast period.

According to Diabetes Canada, new 2022 figures show the continued rising trend of diabetes rates in Canada with no signs of leveling or decreasing. Diabetes continues to affect more Canadians than ever before. The new diabetes figures show a steady, continued increase in diabetes in the country with 11.7 million Canadians living with diabetes or prediabetes. More than 5.7 million Canadians are living with diagnosed diabetes (type 1 or type 2 diabetes) and there are 11.7 million Canadians living with diabetes or prediabetes (which if left unmanaged, can develop into type 2 diabetes).

Diabetes reduces lifespan and people with the disease are likely to experience blindness, being hospitalized for amputations, kidney failure, heart attacks, strokes, and heart failure. Diabetes is also costing the healthcare system USD 30 billion per year to treat people with diabetes. First-line therapy used in patients with T2D is metformin monotherapy. When metformin is contraindicated or not tolerated, or when treatment goals are not achieved after three months of use at the maximum tolerated dose, other options need to be considered.

Recently added to the growing spectrum of diabetes mellitus drugs, dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors, sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitors, and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) agonists are generally used to supplement treatment with metformin.

There is currently no national drug coverage system in Canada, there is a mix of public and private coverage. Governments pay 40 percent of the costs. Forty percent of the costs are paid by private insurance, which is usually arranged through employee benefit plans. Individuals pay 20 percent of the costs, which are usually made up of premiums, deductibles, and co-pays that go toward public and private coverage. The cash market for prescription drugs is relatively small in Canada. However, the out-of-pocket impact is not insignificant when patients have high dollar value contributions.

Owing to the aforementioned factors the market is expected to grow during the forecast period.

Competitive Landscape

The North American Biguanide market is fragmented, with manufacturers like Takeda, Merck, Sanofi, GlaxoSmithKline, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals having a global market presence and the market is highly competitive due to generic drugs manufacturers' presence.

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