To control type 2 diabetes with a self-contained artificial pancreas?
What if type 2 diabetics soon had a way to lessen the issues they face on a daily basis with blood sugar control? According to a recent publication in Nature Medicine, the use of an artificial pancreas in type 2 diabetes patients has shown positive preliminary results.
Having type 2 diabetes and using insulin
Kind 2 diabetes, the most prevalent type, mostly affects overweight and obese persons, inactive people, and those over 45. Furthermore, it is evident that this condition affects individuals of ever-younger ages given the rise in obesity incidence in Western nations.
In actuality, type 2 diabetes is characterised by an early onset of “insulin resistance,” which is what raises blood sugar levels too high.
When confronted with this very high blood sugar level, the pancreas secretes increasing amounts of insulin in an unsuccessful attempt to control it. The pancreas gradually exhausts itself, and insulin production declines.
The patient develops an insulin dependent that need lifetime insulin shots when the pancreas is completely incapable of producing insulin at an advanced stage of the illness.
And what if type 2 diabetics were quickly able to resolve the issues they face on a daily basis with insulin administration and blood sugar control? According to a recent publication in Nature Medicine, the use of an artificial pancreas in type 2 diabetes patients has shown positive preliminary results.
An intelligent, autonomous artificial pancreas
The artificial pancreas, created by researchers at the University of Cambridge, is a system that consists of an application and an insulin pump. The “CamAPS HX” programme makes use of an algorithm that may predict the insulin dosages required to maintain the patient’s blood glucose levels within a certain range. It is important to note that this application operates autonomously, meaning it may decide on its own whether or not to inject the patient with insulin.
The artificial pancreas has never been tested in type 2 diabetic patients who were not on dialysis, despite the fact that it has previously been used effectively in patients with type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes who are on dialysis.
26 type 2 diabetes patients who were not on dialysis and receiving medical care at the Wolfson Clinic were included in this new study by the researchers. After that, the patients were split into two groups:
A Test Group Using The Artificial Pancreas Prospers
A control group receiving standard care that may include a manual insulin injection that is connected to hypoglycemic therapies.
The patients in the test group profited from conventional treatment after eight weeks, whereas those in the control group benefited from the artificial pancreas. Each of them had a continuous glucose monitoring device for the duration of the trial.
Towards Artificial Pancreas-Based Type 2 Diabetes Management?
The glycemic goal, which they set between 3.9 and 10 mmol/L, and the proportion of time spent with high blood sugar (more than 10 mmol/L), were the two parameters that the researchers paid close attention to. Thus, they were able to see the following outcomes at the conclusion of the study:
- Compared to 32% of the time for the control group, the test group’s glycemic objective was met 66% of the time.
- The test group had high blood sugar 33% of the time, compared to 67% for the control group.
- The test group’s average blood sugar level was 9.2 mmol/L compared to 12.6 mmol/L for the control group.
These positive comments from the study’s participants support these satisfying outcomes.
Many people are really happy that they are no longer need to have daily insulin injections and capillary blood glucose readings.
And 89% of them say they spend less time dealing with their diabetes-related issues. Positive evaluation made all the more so by the fact that no patient was discovered to have severe hypoglycemia, which is important for the safety of using this device.
The main drawbacks include worry over the possibility of hypoglycemia or the size of the device, as well as the hospitalisation of a participant owing to an abscess at the site of insertion of the cannula attached to the pump.
What will researchers do next? to perform a much bigger research in order to collect a lot of data in order to finally get this very promising technology a commercial licence!