Focus on Diabetes

Host: Jennifer Caudle, DO

Guest: Javier Morales, MD, FACP, FACE

In this case-based discussion, Dr. Morales will share insights from his clinical experience on selecting patients likely to benefit from treatment with fixed-ratio combinations of GLP-1 receptor agonists and basal insulin, as well as advice on how to start and titrate these agents.

Host: Matt Birnholz, MD

Guest: Javier Morales, MD, FACP, FACE

Guest: Wendy S. Lane, MD

Demonstration and Panel Discussion: We will present video demonstrations of how to administer fixed-ratio combinations of GLP-1 receptor agonists and basal insulin, accompanied by a panel discussion with Drs. Lane and Morales on strategies for overcoming barriers to injectable therapy for type 2 diabetes.

Host: Brian P. McDonough, MD, FAAFP

Diabulimia, defined as the manipulation of insulin treatments by Type 1 diabetic patients in order to lose weight, is a rising problem among teens and young adults in the U.S, particularly young women. Joining Dr. Brian McDonough to discuss this dual diagnosis phenomenon of diabetes and eating disorders, ways in which they exacerbate other disease processes, the long term consequences, and management priorities for phycisians is author and registered dietitian Susan Weiner. Susan is a recipient of the AADE Diabetes Educator of the Year award and has devoted much of her writing and clinical expertise to addressing diabulimia in at-risk patients.

Host: Matt Birnholz, MD

Guest: Rishi P. Singh, MD

The past 40 years have witnessed great advancements in therapeutic options for treating diabetic retinopathy. Despite a number of effective treatment options, diabetic eye disease is one of the leading causes of vision loss in the United States, in part because many patients are not identified as needing therapy. In addition to counseling patients on the importance glucose control on maintaining vision, clinicians should emphasize the need for regular vision tests among patients with diabetes. Early detection offers the best long-term visual outcomes and is even more important with new treatments approved for the management of diabetic retinopathy. As a value added-resource, a specialized toolkit will also be included as a supplement to the webcast. The toolkit will provide for clinicians clinical practice guidelines and recommendations for screening and diagnosis. In addition, the toolkit will provide helpful information and resources for patients, their families and caregivers.

[Read the Article]

Despite targeted efforts to reduce obesity through diet and exercise, these rates continue to rise. A new study from Ontario, Canada found that obesity and diabetes rates were lower in more walkable neighborhoods compared to less walkable neighborhoods, where they saw an increase in these rates.

Researchers from St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto studied almost 9,000 neighborhoods in Southern Ontario looking at walkability scores, along with government health data and survey results during a twelve-year period. They examined whether neighborhoods that were more walkable experienced a slower increase in obesity and diabetes compared to less walkable neighborhoods.

[Watch more videos of The JAMA Report]

Host: Jennifer Caudle, DO

Host Jennifer Caudel, DO welcomes Jay Shubrook, DO, Director of Clinical Research and Diabetes Services at Touro University-California College of Osteopathic Medicine. Recorded on site at the American Osteopathic Association's annual medical education conference, Dr. Shubrook discusses a pilot study in which newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes patients were treated with early insulin rather than lifestyle changes and oral therapies alone. The results suggested not only good safety profiles, but also better long-term outcomes for patients.

[Read the Article]

Proliferative diabetic retinopathy (PDR) is a leading cause of vision loss in patients with diabetes, resulting in up to 24,000 cases of blindness each year in the United States. Laser therapy has been the most common treatment used to help reduce severe vision loss, but the procedure has many side effects including permanent loss of peripheral vision and swelling of the retina.

A group of researchers from across the US tested an alternative treatment using an injectable medication called ranibizumab, to see if it would be as effective as the laser therapy. They studied more than 300 patients with PDR, assigning them to either receive standard laser therapy or an injection into the eye. In total, they treated close to 400 eyes.

Outcomes, especially loss of vision, were compared at two years. Over the two year period, researchers found that patients receiving the injections of medication had fewer side effects and did somewhat better in terms of vision loss than those who received laser therapy.

[Watch more videos of The JAMA Report]

Guest: Janet B. McGill, MD, MA, FACE

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 9.3% of the US population has diabetes mellitus (DM), and that 27.8% of this population has undiagnosed DM. Patients with DM have twice the medical costs of those without DM, and the direct financial burden on the US healthcare system was $176 billion in 2012. All individuals with type 1 DM (5% of the diabetic population) require insulin to control blood glucose levels; in addition, many individuals with type 2 DM require insulin as the disease progresses. Exogenous insulin is available in rapid-, short-, intermediate-, and long-acting formulations, and the goals of therapy are to mimic endogenous insulin while reducing the risk for adverse events and complications. New routes of administration, such as oral and buccal, and new longer-acting insulins are in development to improve and optimize diabetes management. It is vital for clinicians who manage DM to have a thorough understanding of insulin therapy, including insulin physiology and its dysfunction seen in DM; an overview on current and emerging insulin therapies; and best practices on constructing insulin-based treatment regimens. This interactive activity will provide information on insulin physiology in individuals without DM, the physiologic dysfunction of insulin seen in patients ...

Host: John J. Russell, MD

Guest: Candis Morello, PharmD, CDE

Candis M Morello, Professor of Clinical Pharmacy at UC San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, joins Dr. John Russell to talk about team-based care integrations of certified diabetes educators to help empower diabetes patients and improve long-term outcomes.

Diabetes Discourse, a non-certified educational series, is brought to you by AstraZeneca, pushing the boundaries of science to create life-changing medicines for people with diabetes. Content of this diabetes education is produced and solely controlled by ReachMD. This series is intended for healthcare professionals only.

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Host: Brian P. McDonough, MD, FAAFP

Dr. Brian McDonough welcomes Dr. Tina Thethi, Assistant Professor of Medicine in the section of Endocrinology and Metabolism at Tulane University Health Sciences Center. Dr. Thethi provides the inside scoop on diabetes topics of particular interest to endocrinologists in practice today, from pre-diabetes management to continuous glucose monitoring to novel drug research and development.