Insurers hold key to diabetes device sales
Companies that make continuous glucose monitors to help diabetics manage their blood sugar will see an upturn in demand for the devices in the next few years as more private insurers agree to pay for them (Reuters)
Long-Acting Insulins in Type 1 Diabetes Safer Than Traditional Agents
For type 1 diabetes, long-acting insulins such as glargine (Lantus) reduce severe hypoglycemic episodes but don’t offer clinically significant improved glycemic control, according to a meta-analysis (Medpage Today)
Scientists discover possible cause of circulatory complications of diabetes
Scientists at the University of Bristol have identified a protein in cells that could be responsible for circulatory complications of diabetes (JDRF)
Alcohol consumption and risk of microvascular complications in type 1 diabetes patients: the EURODIAB Prospective Complications Study
Consistent with its effects on macrovascular complications, moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a lower risk of all microvascular complications among type 1 diabetes patients (Diabetologia)
Investment in Disease Prevention Could Save America More than $16 Billion in Five Years
Return on investment of more than 5 to 1; focus on increasing physical activity, improving nutrition (RWJF, USA)
Potential to Prevent Loss of Insulin in Type 2 Diabetes
The compound, known as PBA, is already FDA approved for use in another clinical application. That suggests it could be fast tracked for use in humans to prevent or delay beta cell dysfunction (Garvan Institute, USA)
Incretin-Based Therapies in Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
The availability of GLP-1 mimetics and DPP 4 inhibitors has increased our armamentarium for treating T2DM (Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism)
Diabetes Makes People More Vulnerable to TB: Study
Diabetes makes a person about three times as likely to develop tuberculosis, and it may be to blame for more than 10 percent of TB cases in India and China, researchers said on Monday (ADA, USA)
Diabetes ups tuberculosis risk
According to recent analysis published in the Public Library of Science Journal, PLoS Medicine this week, people with diabetes could face a three times increased risk of developing active tuberculosis (Diabetes, UK)
The European Perspective of Diabetes Prevention
The Diabetes Prevention Forum is taking immediate action to co-ordinate and improve the information flow between all relevant stakeholders to enable more effective communication, so helping to improve the ability to prevent type 2 diabetes in Europe (Thieme Connect)
Statement of the American Diabetes Association on U.S. Senate Hearing to Discuss the Americans with Disabilities Act
“We applaud Chairman Edward Kennedy (D-Mass), Senator Mike Enzi (R-WY), Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT), for demonstrating their commitment to ending discrimination against people with disabilities by holding today’s hearing to discuss the coverage of Americans with diabetes and other serious illnesses under the Americans with Disabilities Act” (Market Watch, USA)
Association of British Clinical Diabetologists (ABCD) and Diabetes-UK survey of specialist diabetes services in the UK, 2006. 1. The consultant physician perspective
All 592 UK consultant diabetologists were invited to participate in an on-line survey (Diabetic Medicine)
Diabetes Online Health Guide Released on NHS Choices
The guide takes patients through each stage, from before diagnosis, through to how to live and self-manage the condition (NHS Choices, UK)
New wireless diabetes management system for UK and Ireland
Medtronic, Inc. and Bayer Diabetes Care, a division of Bayer HealthCare and a member of the Bayer Group, today announced the availability in the UK and Ireland of the Contour® Link blood glucose meter (Diabetes, UK)
Diabetic neuropathy: Mechanisms to management.
This review covers the pathology, epidemiology, biochemical pathways, and prevention of diabetic neuropathy, as well as discusses current symptomatic and causal therapies and novel approaches to identify therapeutic targets (PubMed, USA)
Notification of random hyperglycaemia to general practitioners by an emergency medicine team: impact of a simple intervention plan
EM staff education, together with an automated laboratory message, significantly improved the rate and quality of notification of elevated RVPG levels to GPs (Diabetic Medicine)
Rediscover diabetes online with the launch of two new websites
The websites www.diabetesaustralia.com.au and www.ndss.com.au were redeveloped after extensive research on the availability of diabetes information online (AHHA, Australia)
Weekly basal-bolus adjustments may reduce HbA1c levels in patients with type 2 diabetes
The efficacy of a simple algorithm and an insulin-to-carbohydrate ratio to both deliver and adjust prandial insulin may increase physician and patient willingness to advance to basal-bolus insulin (Endocrine Today, USA)
‘Snapshots’ of eyes could serve as early warning of diabetes
A new vision screening device, already shown to give an early warning of eye disease, could give doctors and patients a head start on treating diabetes and its vision complications, a new study shows (GEN, USA)
Post-hoc analyses of type 2 diabetes patients switch from premixed insulin regimen to basal insulin plus oral hypoglycemic agents regimen
Type 2 diabetic patients treated with twice-daily injection of premixed 30 R insulin with or without OAD (s) can be effectively and safely switched to basal insulin plus OAD (PubMed, USA)
Diabetes Experts Share New Research and Discuss Vision for Best Practices
Diabetes experts throughout the world are meeting in Washington, DC, to answer these questions: What are the clinical risks of not treating pre-diabetes? – Can society afford the costs of treating of not treating the pre-diabetes state? (AACE, USA)
Relationships between insulin secretion after intravenous and oral glucose administration in subjects with glucose tolerance ranging from normal to overt diabetes
Acute insulin release (AIR) in response to intravenous glucose injection (IVGTT) can be abolished in diabetic subjects when their response to oral glucose is maintained. To elucidate this phenomenon, we examined the relationships between fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and the secretory responses to an IVGTT and an oral glucose test (Diabetic Medicine)
The relationship between islet alpha cell insulin resistance and inflammatory pathway activation and its mechanism
High-fat-diet feeding induces islet alpha cell insulin resistance and activates the mRNA expression of inflammatory path molecules in beta cell-deleted rat models and it may relate with the increased plasma FFA concentration. Pioglitazone intervention can reverse these effects (PubMed, USA)
Pathophysiology and treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes exhibiting failure to oral drugs.
Patients not responding to GLP-1 mimetics or experiencing significant side effects will be treated with insulin. Irrespective of the policy used for the drug treatment of type 2 diabetes, exercise and proper diet will remain important for optimization of metabolic control (PubMed, USA)
Spherix Expands Phase 3 Naturlose Diabetes Trial Outside of the U.S.
Spherix Incorporated (Nasdaq: SPEX) reported that the Phase 3 clinical trial of its potential type 2 diabetes drug, Naturlose(R), will expand outside of the United States (PRN)
Secular decline in mortality from coronary heart disease in adults with diabetes mellitus: cohort study
The strong general reduction in mortality rates from coronary heart disease from the first to the second follow-up period also benefited people with diabetes, but the more than twofold higher mortality from coronary heart disease associated with diabetes persisted over time (BMJ, UK)
Monogenic Diabetes – first in a new series of NDST Diabetes Bulletin
The National Diabetes Support Team have published the first in the new series of “Diabetes Bulletin”. The Bulletin is a one page digest on a topic of the moment intended for all busy healthcare professionals who want a quick and comprehensive update on an important area (NDST, UK)
A profile of impaired insulin degradation in relation to late-life cognitive decline: A preliminary investigation
These preliminary analyses of a possible phenotype of impaired insulin degradation provide supportive evidence that deficits in insulin degradation may be related to late-life verbal memory decline (Geriatric Psychiatry)
Metformin as first choice in oral diabetes treatment: the UKPDS experience
The UK Prospective Diabetes Study (UKPDS) demonstrated a substantial beneficial effect of metformin therapy on cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes, with a 36% relative risk reduction in all cause mortality and a 39% relative risk reduction in myocardial infarction (PubMed, USA)
Biphasic insulin aspart 30 treatment improves glycaemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes
The use of BIAsp 30 monotherapy or in combination with OADs in clinical practice was effective and safe in patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes mellitus (PubMed, USA)
The role of macrophage migration inhibitory factor on glucose metabolism and diabetes
Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a proinflammatory cytokine involved in many inflammatory reactions and disorders, and it has become evident that it also affects glucose homeostasis. The protein is produced by pancreatic beta cells and can promote the release of insulin (Diabetologia)
Do Internists, Pediatricians, and Psychiatrists Feel Competent in Obesity Care?
This survey demonstrated a critical need for training in specific areas of obesity care. The proposed curriculum targets these areas taking into consideration observed differences across specialties (Journal of General Internal Medicine, USA)
Impact of statins on modulation by insulin of expression of plasminogen activator inhibitor type-1
Insulin-mediated augmented expression of PAI-1 may be amenable to suppression attributable to pleiotropic effects of statins, potentially diminishing cardiovascular risk in patients with insulin resistance (Coronary Artery Disease, USA)
A retrospective evaluation of congestive heart failure and myocardial ischemia events in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus
CHF incidence may be greater when rosiglitazone is combined with sulfonylureas or insulin. When data were pooled, more events of myocardial ischemia were observed with rosiglitazone versus control. Final results from RECORD will allow a more rigorous evaluation of the cardiovascular safety profile (PubMed, USA)
Diabetes Awareness Week begins
Diabetes Australia launches its major Diabetes Awareness Week campaign today, with the message of urging all Australians to be aware of their family history of type 2 diabetes (Diabetes, Australia)
Swimmer takes on the Northumberland Strait
Adding to her challenge is the fact that she has Type 1 diabetes. She wears a waterproof insulin pump while swimming and has to stop every half-hour, treading water while she checks her blood sugar levels (Globe and Mail, Canada)
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