The American Diabetes Association’s annual meeting, held virtually June 25-29 this year, attracted more than 11,500 attendees from around the world, including clinicians, academics, related health professionals, and others interested in diabetes. The conference highlighted the latest advances in diabetes research and improving patient care with presentations that focused on treatment recommendations and advances in management technology.
In the GRADE study, David Nathan, MD, of Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School Boston and colleagues found that insulin glargine and liraglutide were more effective than glimepiride and sitagliptin in keeping hemoglobin A1c levels within target ranges.
The authors conducted a comparative efficacy study of four commonly used drugs (the sulfonylurea glimepiride, the dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitor sitagliptin, the glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonist liraglutide and insulin glargine) for the treatment of type 2 Diabetes to find out which drugs work best when adding metformin to keep glucose levels within the accepted target range. The researchers found that insulin glargine and liraglutide were more effective than glimepiride, which in turn was more effective than sitagliptin in keeping hemoglobin A1c levels in the range of less than 7 percent. The secondary endpoints showed further differences between the four drugs in terms of side effects and other effects of the drugs.
“Weighing the benefits and risks of the four drugs should help patients and their healthcare providers choose the most appropriate glucose drugs for them. Further analysis examining different effects of the drugs on subgroups of patients will help individualize diabetes management.” said Nathan. “Currently, the treatment of type 2 diabetes is often a ‘one size fits all’ approach with only modest consideration of the relative pros and cons of certain drugs. The results of the unique long-term direct comparisons in GRADE will allow the rational choice of drugs to be used Facilitate treatment of type 2 diabetes. “
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In another study, Daniel S. Hsia, MD, of the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and colleagues found that more children were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes during the pandemic (March to December 2020) and more children were diagnosed with type 2 diabetes Diagnosis required hospitalization compared to a similar period in 2019.
The author conducted a retrospective chart review of hospital admissions for emerging type 2 diabetes from March 2019 to December 2019 and for the same period in 2020 in a children’s tertiary care hospital. Children under 19 years of age were identified using ICD-10 codes and each intake was carefully screened to exclude patients with type 1 diabetes or non-diabetic hyperglycemia. The researchers observed an increase in the number of children and adolescents diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. Additionally, children admitted to hospital in 2020 had greater visual acuity, as indicated by higher blood sugar, higher hemoglobin A1c, and higher indicators of dehydration compared to children admitted in 2019.
“Staying home orders and other restrictions due to COVID-19 have exacerbated risk factors for type 2 diabetes such as decreased physical activity, more screen time, trouble sleeping, and increased intake of processed foods, all of which can lead to weight gain. “Said Hsia. “These results from our one center could be a microcosm of what is happening in other children’s hospitals across the country. Providers need to be aware of children with type 2 diabetes who may present with increased visual acuity due to the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic. “
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In a retrospective study, Sudip Bajpeyi, Ph.D., of the University of Texas at El Paso and colleagues found that patients with COVID-19 infection and untreated diabetes had higher levels of infection and experienced longer hospital stays and recovery times than those who treated her condition with medication.
The authors wanted to gain insight into the impact of untreated diabetes on the severity and recovery of COVID-19 infection in a high-risk population (Hispanic and Latinx communities). The retrospective study analyzed the medical records of 369 patients admitted to the University Medical Center in El Paso, Texas with COVID-19 infection. Patients were divided into normoglycemic, prediabetes, and diabetes groups based on hemoglobin A1c levels. The researchers found that about 40 percent of Americans who died from COVID-19 infection also had comorbid diabetes. In addition, one in ten patients with diabetes who were hospitalized for COVID-19 infection died within a week.
“The public health implications of our results include the importance of controlling blood sugar levels in hospitalized COVID-19 patients and the need for diabetes prevention and education, particularly for Hispanic and Latin American communities,” Bajpeyi said.
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ADA: Pedophile Hospitalization Rates for Emerging T2DM Increased During Pandemic
WEDNESDAY, June 30, 2021 (HealthDay News) – Hospital admission rates for new onset pediatric type 2 diabetes have increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a study presented at the American Diabetes Association’s annual meeting that performed virtual took place from June 25th to June 29th
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ADA: Tirzepatid not inferior, superior to semaglutide for T2DM
TUESDAY, June 29, 2021 (HealthDay News) – The dual glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide and glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist, tirzepatide, is not inferior to semaglutide in lowering glycated hemoglobin levels in patients with type 2 diabetes and considering a study published online June 25 in the New England Journal of Medicine, coinciding with the American Diabetes Association’s annual meeting, held virtually June 25-29.
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ADA: Efpeglenatide lowers the risk of adverse cardiovascular events in T2DM
TUESDAY, June 29, 2021 (HealthDay News) – Patients with type 2 diabetes and a history of cardiovascular disease or current kidney disease are at risk for adverse cardiovascular events with efpeglenatide, an exendin-like glucagon-like Peptide-1 receptor, less agonist than placebo, according to a study published online June 28 in the New England Journal of Medicine, which coincides with the American Diabetes Association’s annual meeting, held virtually June 25-29 .
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HealthDay Now: Diabetes Care in 2021
Mabel Jong had a say in our latest HealthDay Now Dr. Robert Gabbay, the scientific and medical director of the ADA. Dr. Gabbay shared key lessons learned from the meeting, addressing insulin prices and racial differences in diabetes care.
