Should People With Type 2 Diabetes Get Hepatitis B Vaccine?

December 30, 2011 

written by Michael O’Leary

Adults 23 to 59 with type 2 diabetes are about twice as likely to develop hepatitis B, compared to people without diabetes.

Citing that result from an accumulation of data monitored by the Centers for Disease Control’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the agency issued a recommendation that all unvaccinated adults under 60 with diabetes should get vaccinated for hepatitis B.

As reported by MedPage Today the CDC published its findings and recommendation in the Dec. 23, issue ofMorbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. (Link to published site)

Thirty Minutes of Exercise Per Week May Help Type 2 Diabetes

December 20, 2011 

Jonathan Little

written by Michael O’Leary

Can’t do 150 minutes of exercise per week? Maybe 30 minutes of intense training each week can help control your type 2 diabetes.

If you have type 2 diabetes and find it hard to fit in the 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous exercise a week recommended by the American Diabetes Association, there may be a way to get as much benefit from 30 minutes a week, a small new study suggests.

Led by Jonathan Little, of the Departments of Kinesiology and of Pediatrics and Medicine at McMaster University, Ontario, the researchers found that six high-intensity training sessions totaling only 30 minutes per week for two weeks rapidly reduced high blood sugar and increased the capacity of skeletal muscles to use oxygen. (Link to published site)

Dapagliflozin maintains HbA1c control as companies seek to bolster case for approval

December 19, 2011

written by Michael O’Leary

Dr. Krzysztof Strojek

Adding dapagliflozin to glimepiride (Amaryl®) maintained reductions of blood sugar levels over nearly six months, in an extension of a study that had already shown that the combination of type-2 diabetes drugs was better than either drug alone.

The Polish study, extended to add data to the case for FDA approval of dapagliflozin by AstraZeneca and Bristol-Myers Squibb, was presented at the Diabetes Federation World Diabetes Congress in Dubai, United Arab Emirates this past week. (Link to published site)

Omega-3 margarine may reduce second heart attack risk for type 2 diabetes

December 16, 2011 

written by Michael O’Leary

If you have diabetes, the margarine you use may reduce your risk of a heart attack, a Dutch study shows.

A group of men diagnosed with diabetes who added margarine with Omega-3 fatty acids to their diets after having heart attacks experienced an 84 percent reduction in abnormal heart rhythms after their heart attacks compared to similar patients who did not add the fortified margarine to their diets. (Link to published site)

GOOOOOOOAAAAALLLLL!!!!!!! Interim Results Promising for Lixisenatide

December 7, 2011

written by Michael O’Leary

More people with type 2 diabetes using insulin and metformin who have trouble keeping their blood glucose below 8 percent are able to reach their goal if they take lixisenatide with insulin and metformin.

That’s the interim result of the GetGoal Duo 1 study announced today in a press release by Sanofi Aventis, which has the marketing rights to the drug made by Zealand Pharma. (Link to published site)

Type 2 Diabetes and Chronic Kidney Disease? Don’t Let Your HbA1c Get Too Low

December 6, 2011

written by Michael O’Leary

If you have type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease, lowering your HbA1c too much may be as bad as not lowering it enough. That’s the conclusion of another study of people who have diabetes and stage 3 or 4 kidney disease. The study appears in this month’s Archives of Internal Medicine.

There were 23,296 patients in this study, all had been hospitalized in Alberta, Canada with stage 3 or 4 chronic kidney disease and type 1 or 2 diabetes. The researchers led by Dr. Marcello Tonnelli, of the University of Alberta in Edmonton, analyzed their medical records and categorized them by blood glucose control based on the first HbA1c measurement taken during the study period. They then tracked subsequent hospitalizations, heart attacks and other heart-related events as well as progression of the kidney disease. (Link to published site)

Low-calorie diet boosts heart function in type 2 diabetes patients

December 2nd, 2011 by Ryan Luce No Comments

written by Michael O’Leary

Dr. Sebastiaan Hammer

Severely restricting calorie intake eliminated the need for insulin and resulted in improved heart function in obese patients with type 2 diabetes, according to a study presented yesterday at the annual meeting of theRadiological Society of North America being held in Chicago this week.

Before going on a crash diet, however, the researchers, led by Dr. Sebastiaan Hammer of the Department of Radiology at Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands, warn that not all type 2 diabetes patients should opt for this type of therapy, and should consult their doctors before starting such a diet.

Soda Pop – Worse for Women?

November 23rd, 2011 by Ryan Luce No Comments

written by Michael O’Leary

Women who drink two or more sugary soft drinks a day are more likely to have bigger waistlines, and develop heart disease and type 2 diabetes than women who drink less than that, a new multi-ethnic study shows.

The same effects were not seen in men, however, which the researchers suggested as evidence that the relationship between sugary drinks and cardiovascular diseases differs between men and women.

The study presented by Dr. Christina Shay, of the University of Oklahoma, was reported on by MedPage Todayat the AHA’s Scientific Sessions conference in Orlando, Florida Nov. 12-16. She suggested that the reason women may be more affected than men is that women have lower energy requirements and may have higher cardiovascular risk factors when a higher proportion of calories comes from sugared drinks. (Link to published site)

What is iglucose? (Hint: it doesn’t play mp3′s)

November 21st, 2011 by Ryan Luce No Comments

written by Michael O’Leary

If you log your glucose readings you know what an additional pain it is to keep your records for four daily glucose readings up-to-date. Sure you use one of the glucometers that feeds the daily data into software on your computer that will generate reports, but you still you have time to get a computer and upload the data and run the software. Now a new device loads the data automatically, wherever you are, whenever you do a blood test and automatically runs the reports.

The FDA announced this week that it has approved Positive ID Corporation’s iglucose™ mobile health system for diabetes management. iglucose eliminates the burden of keeping manual logbooks and empowers individuals with diabetes to be more engaged in the self-management of their condition, according to a company press release. (Link to published site)

Latest Good News on Evacetrapib

November 18th, 2011 by Ryan Luce No Comments

written by Michael O’Leary

If you have type 2 diabetes, you probably also battle cardiovascular disease often with statin drugs to lower your cholesterol. The American College of Physicians recommends that all people with diabetes and any other risk factor for cardiovascular disease should be taking cholesterol-lowering statin drugs.

Another promising new drug is undergoing testing that appears to boost good HDL cholesterol while lowering bad LDL cholesterol, and so far, without causing adverse effects on blood pressure that have stymied similar drugs. The latest clinical trial results of evacetrapib were highlighted in this week’s Journal of the American Medical Association.

Co-author Dr. Steven Nissen, of the Cleveland Clinic said these early results clear the way for larger studies. (Link to published site)

Surprising News: Losing Weight Helps You Feel Better (ok, ok, not so surprising)

November 14th, 2011 by Ryan Luce No Comments

written by Michael O’Leary

For most adults battling the midlife bulge, losing weight boosts their sense of well-being, and it is no less so for people with type 2 diabetes.

A large survey of 14,921 patients who took part in the U.S. Study to Help Improve Early evaluation and management of risk factors Leading to Diabetes (SHIELD) asked adults about changes in weight to evaluate the effect of weight on nine aspects of well-being. These included physical health, family interactions, work performance, interactions with co-workers and friends, social activities, daily activities, self-esteem, emotional health and overall quality of life. (Link to published site)

Recent Posts

25 Percent of People Have Diabetes or Prediabetes

November 10th, 2011 by Ryan Luce No Comments

written by Michael O’Leary

Dr. Mona Boaz

More people may be walking around with pre-type 2 diabetes and don’t know it than had been thought. Finding them is considered key to stepping up prevention efforts.

Almost a quarter of the people who underwent free screenings were found to have prediabetes or full-blown type 2 diabetes researchers in Israel reported at this week’s World Congress on Insulin Resistance, Diabetes, and Cardiovascular Disease meeting.

MedPage Today reported on the conference this week in Los Angeles detailing the findings of a group of researchers led by Dr. Mona Boaz of the Wolfson Medical Center in Holon, Israel. (Link to published site)

Exercise and prediabetes

November 9th, 2011 by Ryan Luce No Comments

written by Michael O’Leary

Dr. Barry Braun

If your doctor has told you that you are prediabetic, exercise training may be your best bet for preventing type 2 diabetes.

Researchers at the Energy Metabolism Laboratory of the University of Massachusetts, Amherst found that men and women with prediabetes who exercised and took a placebo increased their insulin sensitivity by 25 percent to 30 percent more than those who only took metformin and those who took metformin AND exercised.

While the researchers say the difference between exercise-only group and the metformin groups was too small to rule out the possibility that it was simply due to chance, it does show a trend favoring exercise over other actions you might take to prevent developing diabetes. The study was published online Oct. 31, 2011 in Diabetes Care. (Link to published site)

FDA Delays Dapagliflozin Decision Again

November 8th, 2011 by Ryan Luce No Comments

written by Michael O’Leary

The quest for FDA approval of type 2 diabetes drug, dapagliflozin, will drag on at least several more months.

The FDA panel evaluating the drug’s safety was to review additional data from clinical trials and reach a decision on whether or not it would recommend approval of the drug for sale on Friday, Oct. 28, 2011. The panel, however, has now pushed back its decision to at least Jan. 28, 2012. (Link to published site)

Using Muffins To Detect Diabetes

October 31st, 2011 by Ryan Luce No Comments

written by Michael O’Leary

“Fast all night and eat a muffin in the morning,” might be your doctor’s orders for testing whether you have type 2 diabetes someday according to researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York.

That’s what a subset of 73 women taking part in a menopausal hormone therapy trial, were told after a 10-hour fasting blood draw to assess their two-hour glucose levels. (Link to published site)

COPD Detection Adds More Bang to CT Screening for Lung Cancer

Adding a short, low-dose sequence to a CT scan for lung cancer proved useful in identifying current and former heavy smokers with asymptomatic chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a new Dutch study shows.

(Video courtesy of the Journal of the American Medical Association)

While the 2010 US National Lung Screening Trial (NLST) proved that using CT scans to diagnose lung cancer in heavy smokers reduced deaths by 20 percent compared to conventional x-rays, questions about the cost-effectiveness of doing so remain. Whether adding the ability to diagnose COPD in these patients tips the balance in favor of CT screening in this population is unclear. The study appears in the Oct. 26, 2011 Journal of the American Medical Association. (Link to published site)

Does Raising Your HDL Cholesterol Really Help?

October 26th, 2011  

written by Michael O'Leary

Dr. Gregory Nichols

Type 2 diabetics know they have a significantly higher risk for coronary artery disease that can lead to heart attacks and hospitalization. There has been tremendous progress in heading off these heart attacks using LDL cholesterol-lowering medications. The evidence is growing, however, that raising HDL cholesterol may double the benefits in both lowering LDL cholesterol and reducing hospitalizations due to cardiovascular disease.

That’s the finding of a large study conducted by Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Research in Portland, Ore. as reported by MedPage Today. The researchers found that for every increase of 5 milligrams of HDL cholesterol per deciliter (mg/dL) of blood there was a 6 percent reduction in hospitalization due to cardiovascular disease. (Link to published site)

Byetta Can Now Officially Be Used With Lantus

written by Michael O'Leary

Adult type 2 diabetes patients who use insulin have a new option for controlling their blood glucose.

Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and Eli Lilly and Company announced Oct. 19, that the FDA has approved a new use for BYETTA® (exenatide) injection. The drug can now be used by those using the insulin glargine (Lantus®) with or without metformin and or thiazolidinedione and still haven’t achieved control of their blood sugar.

Dr. Christian Weyer, senior vice president, research and development at Amylin said this marks an important new option for the 60 percent of type 2 diabetes patients who haven’t been able to reach their target blood sugar levels. (Link to published site)

MRI Offers Powerful Research Tool for Assessing Lipid-Lowering Therapy

MRI scans might give researchers a powerful new tool for monitoring the effectiveness of lipid therapies for coronary or carotid artery disease, a new study shows.

Led by Dr. Xue-Qiao Zhao, of the University of Washington, Seattle, the researchers sought to determine if cholesterol-lowering drugs deplete plaque lipid content. Zhao told the Hub by e-mail that they used MRI as a tool to make direct assessment of the plaque tissue composition during treatment. The study appears in the October issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology: Cardiovascular Imaging. (Link to published site)

“I got this powdered water – now I don’t know what to add” – Steven Wright

written by Michael O’Leary

H2O might lower your risk of a rising A1c depending on how much you drink each day.

A nine-year study of 3,615 middle-aged, French men and women with normal fasting blood glucose levels at the start of the study showed that the risk of developing excessive blood sugar levels decreased the more water people drank. (Link to published site)

Diabetes Is Yet Another Disease Cured! (In Mice…)

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2011

written by Michael O’Leary

The day when you take a pill to prevent or reverse type 2 diabetes may be a step closer, but clinical testing of the new, promising drug is still a few years away according to new research published yesterday.

Researchers have restored normal blood sugar control in mice with type 2 diabetes and the finding suggests it may be possible for people some day too. (Link to published site)

Does Actos Reduce Stroke Risk?

written by Michael O’Leary

Not to be outdone by upstart Juvisync, a new study shows that long-time type 2 diabetes drug, Actos, may also have blood vessel benefits.

The small study of 52 type 2 diabetes patients, published in the October Journal of the American College of Cardiology found that patients taking pioglitazone (Actos) had reduced inflammation associated with plaque deposits in the main arteries serving the head and neck. Such deposits are thought to increase the risk of stroke. (Link to published site)

MRI Mismatch may Identify Stroke Patients within Critical Treatment Window

A number of MRI techniques have been 

considered as a means for identifying 

elapsed time from stroke onset. (MRI 

angiogram courtesy of Wikipedia.)

A mismatch in the images produced by two different MRI techniques of patients experiencing a stroke are likely to indicate that patients are candidates for intravenous thrombolysis, a new study shows.

The study, led by Dr. Götz Thomalla, of the Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany, adds to the growing evidence that diffusion-weighted (DWI) MRI and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) MRI may be useful for identifying patients who are within the 4.5 hour window when thrombolytic therapy is beneficial. The study is online ahead of print publication in October, The Lancet Neurology. (Link to published site)

You Got Your Januvia in My Zocor! (Introducing Juvisync)

written by Michael O’Leary

Precursor to Juvisync?

If you have type 2 diabetes and take several medications each day, FDA approval of a the first combination drug that both lowers blood sugar and cholesterol is good news.

Juvisync combines the active ingredients of Januvia (sitagliptin) and Zocor (simvastatin).

“This is the first product to combine a type 2 diabetes drug with a cholesterol lowering drug in one tablet,” said Dr. Mary H. Parks, (Link to published site)

Breast Imaging Market Resumes Steady Growth

October 7, 2011

Replacement of these older analog mammography
machines in part has fueled growth of the breast
imaging device market. (Photo courtesy of
National Institutes of Health)

The market for breast imaging devices is expected to recover and continue growing at compound annual growth rate of 10 percent, reaching over $1 billion by 2017, a market analysis shows.

The report prepared by iData Research observes that a strong trend for faster, higher quality imaging has resulted in an almost entire replacement of older analog mammography with more advanced systems.  In addition, emergence of breast-specific gamma imaging (BSGI) as a supplement to mammography and ultrasound is the fastest growing segment of the breast imaging market. Together they form the basis of a projected double-digit growth of the market. (Link to published site)

More Frequent Doctor Visits Helps Your Blood Sugar

October 3rd, 2011

written by Michael O’Leary

Dr. Alexander Turchin

A doctor a day keeps the blood glucose at bay. Well not quite, but a new study of medical records shows that people with diabetes who visited their doctors every two weeks got their blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol under control much sooner than patients who saw their doctors at three to six month intervals.

The research team led by Dr. Alexander Turchin, of Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital analyzed the electronic medical records of 26,496 people at their institution and at Massachusetts General Hospital. All patients had either type 1 or type 2 diabetes with at least one measure of health above the recommend goals. The targets were hemoglobin A1c under 7 percent, blood pressure under 130/85 mm Hg, and LDL cholesterol under 100 mg/dL. (Link to published site)

Do Some Diabetes Drugs Actually Help Your Heart?

September 30th, 2011

written by Michael O’Leary
While looking to find harmful effects of type 2 diabetes drugs on the heart and cardiovascular system, researchers were surprised to find that at least one class of these drugs appear to actually help prevent such effects.

As reported on by MedPage Today at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes meeting last week in Lisbon, Portugal, the researchers found that the class of drugs, called gliptins, were associated with 30 percent reduction in the risk of a major heart-related event, such as a heart attack, compared to diabetes patients who were taking another drug or placebo.

In the wake of the development of heart-related side effects of a cancer drug, called Avandia, last year, the FDA required drug companies to assess the cardiovascular risks of some of the new diabetes drugs.  (Link to published site)

Telemedicine Is Cost Effective for Rural Stroke Patients

25 September 2011

Dr. Jana Wold, assistant professor of Neur-

ology consults with and emergency depart-

ment doctor at a rural hospital using the

telestroke technology. (Photo courtesy

University of Utah Health Care Stroke Center.)

Telemedicine might be a cost-effective solution for improving stroke patient treatment at rural hospitals that cannot employ a full-time neurologist, a new study shows.

Researchers at the University of Utah Health System in Salt Lake City, Utah in collaboration with researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona, used a complex statistical model to compare the cost-effectiveness of stroke treatment using telestroke in rural emergency departments with stroke treatment provided in similar emergency departments without the 2-way audiovisual system. The study appears in the Sept. 20, 2011 journal Neurology. (Link to published site)