Initial Tidbits from ADA 2009

It’s Sunday morning, and as predicted, my feet hurt already. Been so busy running around the halls of the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center here in New Orleans, meeting D-folk and soaking up as much info as possible, that I haven’t had much time to post yet. Been twittering intermittently, though. Catch up my updates there.

For the big news, see the myriad MSM headlines about the RECORD study results, a controversial trial showing that GlaxoSmithKlein’s troubled diabetes drug Avandia reportedly does NOT increase risk of heart disease in Type 2 patients — although “leading cardiologists remain unconvinced, saying the company’s research has serious flaws.”

As previewed, there’s also been much coverage of shifting to the A1c test as a measure for diagnosing diabetes. I was initially unclear on why this is such a “big departure” for the medical establishment when it seems like such a no-brainer.  But it seems the devil’s in the details: “The only thing that has kept the reliable test from becoming a standard diagnostic tool is that the major diabetes groups have not yet agreed on what result constitutes a diagnosis.” Now it looks like they’re going to standardize on a reading of 6.5% or greater to be considered diabetic.  Hmm, that would make me currently non-diabetic! (well, honorary at least)

Meanwhile, I’ve been busy attending sessions about patch pumps, advances in continuous glucose monitoring, and Type 1 diabetes and exercise.

Quotables:

“For a very compulsive person (with diabetes), they are their own closed loop” — Dr. Bruce Buckingham.

“Anything that keeps (diabetes management) simple, people will do. For anything complex, then you need a compulsive patient” — Dr. Bruce Bode

“The future of Type 2 diabetes treatment is going to be GLP-1 drugs, simple regimens, and simple pumps giving basal/bolus — It’s all about simplicity and ease of use” — Dr. Bode

“This is the airbag of insulin pump therapy” — Dr. Bode again, addressing the new Medtroinc Veo system combo pump/CGM launched in Europe this week, which features a new algorithm that automatically shuts down the pump’s insulin delivery when a low is detected (if you don’t respond to alarms).

“The top strategy for intense athletics with Type 1 diabetes is ‘Carry more carbs you DREAM you will ever need‘” — Carla Cox, CDE

“Using CGM puts an extra burden on people with diabetes. It’s easy to get burnt out” — Dr. Howard Wolpert

“People feel more in control when they can see the numbers. Using CGM can be very frustrating, but it can also enhance confidence in your body — you don’t have to live in fear of hypoglycemia” — Dr. Bill Polonsky

And much more to come…

Oh, and btw: did I mention that colored skins are now available for the new OmniPod PDM? (photo to come soon) I’m debating between green and purple.  Just like I promised, bringing you all the important stuff that catches my fancy