Metformin-induced vitamin B12 deficiency: An underdiagnosed cause of diabetic neuropathy

doi:10.4239/wjd.v16.i7.107514

Advanced Search

BPG is committed to discovery and dissemination of knowledge

Home / Archive / Volume 16, Issue 7

This Article

Academic Content and Language Evaluation of This Article

CrossCheck and Google Search of This Article

Academic Rules and Norms of This Article

Citation of this article

Corresponding Author of This Article

Research Domain of This Article

Article-Type of This Article

Open-Access Policy of This Article

Times Cited Counts in Google of This Article

Number of Hits and Downloads for This Article

Total Article Views (305)

All Articles published online

The chart showing PDF series, HTML series, Figures (1-1) series, Tables (1-1) series.

Item

Count

PDF

HTML

218

Figures (1-1)

Tables (1-1)

Sum=281

Publishing Process of This Article

The chart showing Browse series, Download series.

Item

Count

Browse

Download

Sum=8

Jul 15, 2025 (publication date) through Jul 18, 2025

Times Cited of This Article

Times Cited (0)

Journal Information of This Article

Publication Name

World Journal of Diabetes

ISSN

1948-9358

Publisher of This Article

Baishideng Publishing Group Inc, 7041 Koll Center Parkway, Suite 160, Pleasanton, CA 94566, USA

Minireviews

World J Diabetes. Jul 15, 2025; 16(7): 107514
Published online Jul 15, 2025. doi: 10.4239/wjd.v16.i7.107514

Metformin-induced vitamin B12 deficiency: An underdiagnosed cause of diabetic neuropathy

Mauricio Alvarez, Andres E Prieto, Natalia Portilla, Diana Moya, Oswaldo Rincon, Isaac Guzman

Mauricio Alvarez, Natalia Portilla, Oswaldo Rincon, Isaac Guzman, Department of Endocrinology, Hospital Militar Central, Bogotá 110221, Colombia

Andres E Prieto, Internal Medicine Program, University Militar Nueva Granada, Bogotá 110221, Colombia

Diana Moya, Internal Medicine Program, University de la Sabana, Bogotá 110221, Colombia

Author contributions: Alvarez M, Prieto AE, Portilla N, Moya D, Rincon O, and Guzman I contributed to the preparation of the manuscript and approved its final content.

Conflict-of-interest statement: All authors report no relevant conflicts of interest for this article.

Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/

Corresponding author: Mauricio Alvarez, MD, Department of Endocrinology, Hospital Militar Central, Carrera 7a n 94 a 47, Bogotá 110221, Colombia. mauricioalvarez613@gmail.com

Received: March 25, 2025
Revised: April 24, 2025
Accepted: June 11, 2025
Published online: July 15, 2025
Processing time: 112 Days and 12 Hours

Core Tip

Core Tip: Metformin-induced vitamin B12 deficiency is common in type 2 diabetes and is increasingly linked to diabetic neuropathy. Despite emerging evidence supporting screening and supplementation, major clinical guidelines provide inconsistent recommendations. Given the safety, affordability, and potential benefits of vitamin B12, systematic screening should be prioritized in patients with diabetes at risk of deficiency, especially those with neuropathy.