Research pharmacy news out of the UK describes an
artificial pancreas for diabetics being developed by
Prof Joan Taylor of
De Montfort University, Leicester.
This 'smart' polymer device works to mimick the pancreas' role in delivering insulin as and when it is needed by the body.
"The implant is still under development and several years from being available to people with diabetes. However it promises to be an alternative to daily insulin injections and insulin pumps. Its design is aimed at reducing the life-threatening complications associated with diabetes."
In consideration of the growing burden Diabetes is threatening to impose on our healthcare systems, I had to share this exciting bit of news with the readers of this blog!
Labels: burden of disease, diabetes, disease management, research pharmacy
"In the United States, nearly 13 percent of adults age 20 and older have diabetes, but 40 percent of them have not been diagnosed, according to epidemiologists from the
National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), whose study includes newly available data from an
Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT)." “These findings have grave implications for our health care system, which is already struggling to provide care for millions of diabetes patients, many of whom belong to vulnerable groups, such as the elderly or minorities,” said Griffin P. Rodgers, M.D., director of the NIDDK. “Of paramount importance is the need to curb the obesity epidemic, which is the main factor driving the rise in type 2 diabetes.”
“These findings of yet another increase in diabetes prevalence are a reminder that a full-scale public health response is in order. Re-directing the trends in diabetes will require changing the nutritional and physical activity habits of people at risk, and also creative and substantial efforts by health systems and communities," said Ed Gregg, Ph.D., epidemiology and statistics branch chief in CDC’s Division of Diabetes Translation.
Click on the title to link to the NIH news release and further informational links on Diabetes.Labels: applied statistics, burden of disease, CDC, diabetes, health care costs, NIH, obesity, OGTT, Oral Glucose Tolerance Test, public health, research study
Research pharmacy news out of the UK describes an artificial pancreas for diabetics being developed by Prof Joan Taylor of De Montfort University, Leicester.
