In 1997 the United Kingdom Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS), the largest and longest study in type 2 diabetes so far, was finished. Answers to fundamental questions of non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus therapy were expected: 1. What is the benefit from a good metabolic control of diabetes? 2. Has any particular antidiabetic therapy advantages over the other ones? 3. What is the importance of concurrent antihypertensive therapy? The evidence was given that intensive therapy (with antidiabetics or insulin) substantially and significantly reduced the risk of microvascular complications, but the reductions of mortality and macrovascular complications were not significant. An adverse cardiovascular effect of sulfonylureas or insulin were not confirmed. All intensive therapeutic approaches reached comparable results only metformin appeared to be advantageous first-line therapy of choice in obese diabetics. The intensive control of hypertension proved to be even more effective in prevention both the microvascular and namely the macrovascular complications as well as in reducing diabetes related mortality.