The first European-wide strategy for the prevention of type 2 diabetes has been developed by researchers and clinicians from across the UK as part of a pan-European team.
The project, entitled IMAGE (Development and Implementation of a European Guideline and Training Standards for Diabetes Prevention), received substantial funding from the European Union.
It is predicted that one in 10 Europeans aged 20–79 will have developed diabetes by 2030. Once a disease of old age, diabetes is now affecting adolescents and children and the highest increase is in 30–40 year olds. Diabetes now accounts for up to 18% of total healthcare expenditure in Europe and costs an estimated £9 billion per year in the UK.
Launched at the World Congress on Prevention of Diabetes and its Complications in Dresden, Germany, on 9 April 2010, the IMAGE project involved experts from 20 countries (including diabetes specialists, GPs, nurses and patient organisations). The authors of the guideline say that “prevention using lifestyle modifications in high-risk individuals is cost-effective and should be embedded in evaluated models of care. Effective prevention plans are predicated upon sustained government initiatives.”
GlucoMen and celebrity chef Aldo Zilli team up to make healthy meals
GlucoMen, the makers of the GlucoMen LX blood glucose meter, teamed up with top celebrity chef Aldo Zilli to help people with diabetes and diabetes specialist nurses enjoy the very best of Italian cuisine.
At the 2010 Diabetes UK Annual Professional Conference, attended by more than 2000 healthcare professionals and people with diabetes, Aldo showed delegates how to make healthy food in a series of live cookery demonstrations.
Demonstrations included a starter, main course and dessert. Dishes on the menu were specially selected from Aldo’s new book Zilli Light (Simon & Schuster, 2010) to complement one another.
A strip-free blood glucose monitoring system released
Roche has launched a strip-free blood-glucose monitoring system, the Accu-Chek® Mobile. Aimed at people with insulin-treated diabetes who need to test their blood glucose at a high frequency, the device includes a cassette that holds 50 tests on a continuous tape. Furthermore, six lancets are included in a drum with an integrated lancing device, removing the need to handle single lancets.
Some 40% of people with diabetes on insulin therapy measure their blood glucose less often than recommended, frequently stating reasons such as lack of time. It is hoped that this device will reduce the time taken to self-monitor blood glucose.
ABCD rejects proposed reduction in the number of hospital beds
The Association of British Clinical Diabetologists (ABCD) has rejected calls by the think-tank Reform to reduce the number of hospital beds nationwide by moving many services currently provided by hospitals into community clinics. Diabetes was one of the conditions identified by Reform as appropriate for such a move.
The ABCD said that the proposals put forward by the group were fundamentally flawed. ABCD Honorary Secretary Dr Ian Gallen, a consultant physician at Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust, said “We do not believe that the care of critically ill emergency patients and those with diabetes coincident with other conditions requiring hospitalisation, can be provided in the community … [and] cutting hospital beds on these grounds is foolish.”
A course to help improve carers’ diabetes knowledge
A distance learning course designed to reach the carers and families of people with diabetes and raise their awareness of the condition and its management has been launched by the NCFE.
The Level 3 Certificate in Diabetes Awareness was designed by healthcare professionals and education experts. Participants are expected to gain a comprehensive understanding of diabetes, while developing new skills in caring for people with the condition. Discussed are diabetes self-management and how to reduce the risk of complications.
Local colleges and training providers will be able to offer the course to learners who can work through the materials at their own pace, with telephone or email support from their tutor.
Attempts to achieve remission, or at least a substantial improvement in glycaemic control, should be the initial focus at type 2 diabetes diagnosis.
9 May 2024