Diabetes Drugs Linked To Higher Risk For Rare But Deadly Complication

Diabetes drugs linked to higher risk for rare but deadly complication

A new class of type 2 diabetes drugs called SGLT2 inhibitors could increase the risk of a rare, life-threatening complication of the disease called ketoacidosis, a new study warns.
SGLT2 inhibitors include prescription medications such as canagliflozin, dapagliflozin and empagliflozin. Brand names are Invokana, Invokamet, Farxiga, Xigduo XR, Jardiance and Glyxambi.
These drugs first became available in 2013, but in 2015 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning about an increased risk for diabetic ketoacidosis when SGLT2 inhibitors are used.
The condition typically occurs in people with type 1 diabetes. And while it is uncommon in people with type 2 diabetes, case reports have shown it can occur with type 2 disease, according to the study authors.
Ketoacidosis can cause vomiting, abdominal pain, shortness of breath and swelling in the brain. Left untreated, the condition can be fatal, the researchers said.
The new study "essentially confirms what doctors had already suspected," said diabetes expert Dr. Stanislaw Klek, an endocrinologist at NYU Winthrop Hospital in Mineola, N.Y.
"Fortunately, the rate of diabetic ketoacidosis is still very low and should not prevent the usage of this medication class," he added. "It is important to be aware of this potential complication and monitor for symptoms of diabetic ketoacidosis, particularly during periods of illness."
In the new study, researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston analyzed data from 40,000 people with type 2 diabetes. They found that those taking SGLT2 inhibitors were twice as likely to develop Continue reading

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Is diabetes the world’s most connected health condition?

The world marks January 11 as the 95th anniversary of the date that insulin was first used in humans to treat diabetes. Since then it would seem that barely a week passes without another device or treatment in the works. According to the Centre for Disease Control, more than 29 million Americans are living with diabetes, and 86 million are living with prediabetes, a serious health condition that increases a person’s risk of type 2 diabetes and other chronic diseases.
Health monitoring is a critical part of daily diabetes management. A range of apps, connected devices, more recently wearables can assist people to monitor, treat and manage their health. As tech companies compete, let’s take a look at what on the market and what’s in the future:
Connected devices
One of the most notable diabetes devices of recent years is the MyDario all in one glucose meter. It enables people living with diabetes to test their blood glucose levels in seconds, directly onto their smartphone. A corresponding app can share this information with medical professionals and family members and also helps track carb intake and exercise.
Wearables
Whilst you would like to think that wearable devices are becoming more and more prevalent, this is not really the case when it comes to diabetes management. The FDA only approved one diabetes connected device in 2015 and three in 2016. Two examples of these:
Dexcom G5 Continuous Glucose Monitory System
Dexcom has been providing a digital makeover to its continuous glucose monitoring systems for some time and the latest incarnation is the Dexcom G5 Conti Continue reading

Managing Gastroparesis

Poorly controlled diabetes can damage your stomach. It can interfere with eating and with digestion. Diabetic stomach worsens blood glucose control and causes a range of symptoms. This complication is called “gastroparesis” (pronounced gas-tro-pa-REESE-es).
What causes this complication? How can we prevent it and manage it?
Gastroparesis means “weak stomach.” The nerve that tells the stomach to contract and push food along has been damaged, so the stomach muscles don’t work properly. Food stays in the stomach instead of being passed along to the intestine.
This delayed emptying causes painful, unpleasant symptoms and leads to further complications. Studies show gastroparesis is related to a heightened risk of death, more complications, increased hospitalizations, and increased emergency department and doctor visits.
Gastroparesis symptoms include heartburn, nausea, vomiting of undigested food, an early feeling of fullness after meals, weight loss, lack of appetite, gastric reflux, and stomach pain.
Because food can stay in the stomach and start to ferment, patients can get terrible bad breath. Because of all these symptoms, gastroparesis can make it difficult or impossible to hold a job.
Sometimes undigested food forms solid masses called bezoars that may cause nausea, vomiting, and obstruction in the stomach.
Because food intake may be limited, and food may be poorly absorbed, people with gastroparesis are at risk for malnutrition and dehydration. They usually need to drastically change the way they eat — as if diabetes didn’t demand enough changes already � Continue reading

Low carb diet saves NHS £4m in diabetes costs

The support being offered by an online low carb programme has so far saved the NHS £4 million in deprescription costs, it was revealed yesterday.
The free Low Carb Program by the UK’s biggest and fastest growing diabetes patient forum Diabetes.co.uk has so far helped more than 160,000 people since it was launched on World Diabetes Day 2015.
Speaking at the EHI Live event in Birmingham, Arjun Panesar, chief technology officer of the platform, outlined how the programme worked and shared some of the results they have seen from people who have followed it.
He said: “The results from have been impressive and this a solution that is clearly working for people with type 2 diabetes. We’re in the process of documenting the preliminary results with healthcare savings. We intend to share this with PHE/Diabetes UK for them to review the guidelines.”
He said also the estimated saving involved people stopping their prescriptions for drugs to treat type 2 diabetes and the predicted cost was conservative.
The programme takes people through the theory and also provides the practical application on how to implement a low carb lifestyle.
Diabetes.co.uk was the first community forum where people were able to openly share their experiences or discuss life with diabetes including low carb lifestyles due to the fact that the diet sits outside of NICE guidelines which meant other platforms discouraged or removed their conversations.
However, there is now growing medical evidence that type 2 diabetes can be reversed through diet and lifestyle changes.
Results from the Low Carb Education P Continue reading

End of daily injections for diabetes as scientists restore insulin production

The end of daily injections for diabetes sufferers could be in sight after scientists showed it is possible to restore insulin production for up to a year by boosting the immune system.
Hundreds of thousands of people in Britain suffer from Type 1 diabetes and need to inject themselves daily to keep blood sugar levels under control.
The disease attacks insulin-secreting cells in the pancreas. Healthy people have billions of ‘peacekeeping’ cells called ‘T-regs’ which protect insulin-making cells from the immune system but people suffering Type 1 diabetes do not have enough.
"The T-reg intervention frees people like me from the daily grind of insulin therapy and lifelong fear of complication"
Mary Rooney, Type 1 diabetes patient
Now researchers at the University of California and Yale have shown that the ‘T-regs’ can be removed from the body, increased by 1,500x in the laboratory and infused back into the bloodstream to restore normal function.
An initial trial of 14 people has shown that the therapy is safe, and can last up to a year.
"This could be a game-changer," said Dr Jeffrey Bluestone, Professor in Metabolism and Endocrinology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).
“By using T-regs to 're-educate' the immune system, we may be able to really change the course of this disease.
"We expect T-regs to be an important part of diabetes therapy in the future."
Sufferes of type 1 and type 2 diabetes may have to inject insulin daily Photo: Alamy
The treatment also prevents the disease progressing which could save sufferers from blindness and amputat Continue reading