Diabetes news

Turning the corner: improving diabetes care

Care for the estimated 2.35 million people with diabetes in England is improving according to a report published today. The three year progress report charts the developments in NHS diabetes care since the introduction of the Diabetes National Service Framework (NSF) in April 2003. (extract from http://www.dh.gov.uk/NewsHome/NewsArticle/fs/en?CONTENT_ID=4136148&chk=fKxDjg )

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New HTA - systematic review on sampling and treating infected diabetic foot ulcers

Study findings indicate that infection in diabetic foot ulcers (DFUs) cannot be reliably diagnosed using clinical assessment. There is also limited evidence on the relative effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of antimicrobial interventions for DFU infection. (extract from http://www.hta.ac.uk/ProjectData/1_project_record_published.asp?PjtId=1248&status=6)

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8 Diabetes Local Research Networks Announced

The UK Clinical Research Network and the Department of Health have appointed eight Local Research Networks to support the delivery and conduct of clinical diabetes research.

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Diabetes risk in kidney stone treatment

The National Diabetes Support Team have published a "Diabetic Foot Guide". It is thought that worldwide around half of all foot ulcers and amputations in people with diabetes could be prevented. With this in mind this report aims to be a comprehensive guide to improving foot care for people with diabetes, looking at screening and prevention, care pathways, multidisciplinary working and workforce and skills.
(extract from National Diabetes Support Team website http://www.diabetes.nhs.uk/)

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Diabetes risk in kidney stone treatment

Shock wave therapy used to treat kidney stones may increase the risk of diabetes, reported four newspapers (11 April 2006). The newspapers accurately reflected the conclusions of a retrospective cohort study. However, the study had some methodological limitations, and the findings are only relevant to one particular type of shock wave therapy.

• Shock wave therapy used to treat kidney stones may increase the risk of diabetes, reported four newspapers on 11 April 2006 (1-4).
• The newspaper articles were based on a retrospective cohort study examining the adverse effects of shock wave treatment in people with renal or proximal ureteral stones (5). People who received shock wave lithotripsy using an HM-3 lithotriptor were compared with individuals who were managed non-surgically. The authors' concluded that treating renal and proximal stones with the HM-3 lithotriptor was associated with diabetes mellitus and hypertension at 19 years follow up.
• The newspapers provided concise and generally accurate reports of the study findings. Two newspapers (1, 3) reported the lead researcher's statement that it is not completely certain that shock wave therapy causes diabetes and hypertension, but rather there is a h5 association between them. It is important to note that the study findings are based on one particular type of shock wave therapy only. The long-term effects of other, more recent types of shock wave therapy were not assessed.

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Diabetes: State of the Nations 2005

Progress made in delivering the national diabetes frameworks. A report from Diabetes UK In partnership with the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Diabetes and supported by the Hansard Society

This report draws on a range of information to present a picture of diabetes care in the UK today. It provides a voice for people with diabetes, their families, friends and carers through Diabetes Dialogue, and brings that voice together with publicly available statistics and data on diabetes.

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DH announcement on the implementation of NICE Technology Appraisal no. 60 guidance on the use of patient education models for diabetes

The Department of Health (DH) normally directs the NHS to make resources available to implement technology appraisal guidance within three months of its issue. When this guidance was published in April 2003 the usual three month funding direction was waived to allow the NHS to make local decisions about the speed of implementation.

The Department of Health announced on the 15 June 2005 that all PCTs will need to implement NICE guidance TA no. 60 from January 2006. Details can be found on the Department of Health website and the NICE guidance on the use of patient-education models for diabetes is available at http://www.nice.org.uk/ta060.

NICE expects to issue consulting documents on a Clinical Guideline for diabetes in pregnancy (25th July - 26th August)
http://www.nice.org.uk/page.aspx?o=98537

Improving Diabetes Services: The National Servie Framework two years on

Home Office
This report hightlights progress over the two years following the publication of the National Service Framework for DiabetesDelivery Strategy.
http://www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/10/67/20/04106720.pdf

Diabetes Monitor Can Slot Into Gameboy

A Minnesota-based company has developed a blood sugar monitor that plugs into a Gameboy and offers free computer games if used regularly. The Glucoboy, which is manufactured by Guidance Interactive Healthcare, is aimed at children and young adults with diabetes who would otherwise be unmotivated to regularly check their blood sugar levels. In an interview with www.diabetesstation.com, CEO Paul Wessel said: "We are just trying to use technology to help manage the disease better. We know that a reward of any type goes a long way." More details are on www.interguidance.com

New Drug Helps Control Type 2 Diabetes

www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews&storyID=6649116
Long-term use of exenatide, an experimental diabetes drug derived from lizard saliva, reduces blood glucose levels in people with type 2 diabetes who don't do well with sulfonylurea-type drugs, investigators report.

Gene for Diabetes Found

www.newswise.com/articles/view/507844/
A gene involved in the action of insulin is associated with type 2 diabetes and the body’s response to insulin, report scientists at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, USA.

Montreal Study Links Diabetes with Cancer

www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/
Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1098615664819&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154
Diabetic men are more likely than healthy men to develop pancreatic and liver cancer, indicates a study that suggests a potentially fatal complication linked to the insulin deficiency.

Mobile Aid for Diabetes Patients

news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3945359.stm
Mobile phones are being used to try to make the lives of people with diabetes easier by high-speed data transfer.

Researchers Find heart Disease, Type 2 Diabetes Link

www.heartcenteronline.com/myheartdr/home/research-detail.cfm?reutersid=4793
An international team of researchers has identified variations on a specific gene that might help explain why so many patients with type 2 diabetes suffer from coronary artery disease.

Diabetes X-Pert Programme

www.cgsupport.nhs.uk/Resources.asp#xpert
The Diabetes X-Pert Programme has been developed by Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale PCT. It is a six week professional led programme based on the theories of patient empowerment and patient activation. It has been thoroughly evaluated and has produced significant statistical evidence for improved diabetes control for those engaging with it.

Inhaled Insuline May Work for Diabetes

http://my.webmd.com/content/article/95/103290.htm
Inhaled insulin is just as effective as injected insulin at controlling blood sugar, according to a study in the October issue of the journal Diabetes Care.

Blood Presure Drugs Not Linked to Diabetes

www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=healthNews&storyID=6481483
There is some evidence that various types of drugs used to treat high blood pressure could hasten or impede the development of type 2 diabetes, but the latest findings don't support that idea.

Diabetes Increasing at 'Alarming Rate'

news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=3600527
A leading diabetes charity has today said there has been such an increase in the condition that there are now 1.8 million sufferers in the UK – the equivalent of the combined populations of Liverpool, Birmingham and Manchester.

Rising Obesity Will Condemn One in Ten Britons to Diabetes by 2010

www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,8126-1299020,00.html
ONE in ten Britons can expect to suffer from diabetes by 2010 as the full impact of the country’s soaring levels of obesity takes its toll on public health.

Factsheet on extended nurse and supplementary prescribing

www.cgsupport.nhs.uk/diabetes/Resources.asp#extpresc
A new Factsheet on the benefits of extended nurse and supplementary prescribing is now available.

Low-Level Work Linked to Diabetes

www.ivanhoe.com/channels/p_channelstory.cfm?storyid=9643
A new study out of Great Britain reveals the kind of job you have may help determine whether you’ll end up with type 2 diabetes -- especially if you’re a man.

Results of Islet Transplant Study Now Available

www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=14340
Researchers from 12 medical centers in the United States and Canada, who have performed islet transplants in 86 patients with type 1 diabetes, published their results in the first annual report of the Collaborative Islet Transplant Registry (CITR).