News Updates from the 83rd Scientific Sessions
Jane E.B. Reusch, MD, ADA President, Medicine & Science, has an assignment for every ADA member: Tell the story of diabetes and change the outcome of the disease. Dr. Reusch made that plea during her Presidential Address Sunday morning at the Scientific Sessions in Orlando. Read more
For 35 years, Gerald I. Shulman, MD, PhD, FACP, MACE, and his research colleagues have maintained an intense focus on the idea that understanding the molecular basis for insulin resistance in the muscles and liver could lead to effective diabetes therapies. Dr. Shulman was awarded the Banting Medal for Scientific Achievement for his work Sunday morning at the Scientific Sessions. Read more
The latest cancer immunotherapy has an unintended consequence: insulin-dependent diabetes induced by checkpoint inhibitors (CPI). Early reports suggest that about 1 percent of patients on CPI therapy develop insulin-dependent diabetes and patients with existing type 2 diabetes may suddenly become insulin dependent, according a Sunday presentation at the Scientific Sessions. Read more
Fixed-ratio basal insulin/glucagon-like peptide 1 agonist combinations appear to be a better option than sequential intensification for patients with type 2 diabetes who remain uncontrolled on oral anti-diabetic drugs, according to ADA Past President Vivian Fonseca, MD. Read more
Cost and efficacy have created renewed interest in NPH and regular insulin, two “old school” diabetes treatments seemingly pushed to the background in the past 10 to 15 years. An expert panel will examine the various insulin treatment options during a Monday afternoon symposium titled Insulin Therapy—To the Future and Back. Read more
During a Monday afternoon session, three researchers, including Carmen R. Isasi, MD, PhD, and Alan M. Delamater, PhD, will review the results and lessons learned from one of the largest and most comprehensive studies of the role of acculturation in diabetes development. The Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos involved 16,000 adults in the United States. Read more
The ADA and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) will release the first public draft of a new consensus report on managing hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes during a Tuesday morning symposium at the Scientific Sessions. John B. Buse, MD, PhD, and Melanie J. Davies, CBE, MB, ChB, MD, FRCP, FRCGP, co-chair the ADA/EASD committee writing the new consensus report and will also co-chair the session. Read more
While not approved by the Food and Drug Administration for type 1 diabetes, off-label use of sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors continues to increase. An expert panel that includes Ele Ferrannini, MD, and David Cherney, MD, PhD, will discuss the promise of SGLT2 inhibition in type 1 diabetes during a Tuesday morning symposium at the Scientific Sessions. Read more
Felicia Hill-Briggs, PhD, ABPP, ADA President, Health Care & Education, is on a journey to change the world and she’s taking the American Diabetes Association with her. During her presidential address Saturday at the Scientific Sessions, Dr. Hill-Briggs discussed the ADA in the era of health care transformation. Read more
This year's Outstanding Educator in Diabetes Award recipient, Jackie L. Boucher, MS, RDN, serves as President for Children’s HealthLink, an organization dedicated to delivering care to children with congenital heart disease around the world. But her experiences as a diabetes educator and dietitian continue to shape her work. Read more
During Saturday morning’s symposium HIV and Diabetes—The Double Whammy, four speakers reviewed the inflammatory and metabolic changes in HIV patients that can favor diabetes. They also discussed how some of the agents used to treat HIV can also affect metabolism, and how HIV patients are living longer and developing more chronic comorbidities. Read more
Continuous glucose monitoring shows great promise in vulnerable populations, according to the speakers at Saturday morning’s ADA Diabetes Care Symposium—Using Continuous Glucose Monitoring and Smart Devices to Control Glucose when It Matters Most. Helen R. Murphy, MD, FRACP, and the session's other presenters also agreed that more research and randomized clinical trials are needed. Read more
Long-term results from the Veterans Administration Diabetes Trial will be reported Sunday afternoon at the Scientific Sessions. “This symposium will provide a fairly definitive assessment of the long-term benefits of intensive glycemic control in more advanced type 2 diabetes patients,” said Peter Reaven, MD. Read more
The Sunday afternoon symposium New Angles in Adipose Biology will include a look at lipolysis in human adipose tissue. Michael D. Jensen, MD, will examine the regulation of adipose tissue lipolysis from the whole-body level down to the depot, cellular, and molecular levels during his presentation, one of four scheduled for the symposium. Read more
During a Sunday afternoon symposium, four experts will examine the effects of diabetes prevention efforts on diabetes complications and related conditions. Jean-Louis Chiasson, MD, will review eight clinical trials that reach all the way back to the 1960s and try to reconcile what on the surface may appear to be conflicting results with regard to cardiovascular outcomes and diabetes prevention. Read more
Traditional pathways for funding academic research have become more challenging. One alternate funding route may be more partnerships between industry and the academic world, according to John B. Buse, MD, PhD, one of the presenters for the Sunday afternoon session Academia-Industry Collaborations—Key Considerations. Read more
A subanalysis from the Diabetes Remission Clinical Trial (DiRECT) points to changes in hepatic metabolism as a cause for patients with type 2 diabetes entering remission after dramatic weight loss through dietary restriction or bariatric surgery, according to Roy Taylor, MD, one of several researchers to discuss DiRECT study results on Friday at the Scientific Sessions. Read more
Jeffrey Krischer, PhD, will moderate a Saturday afternoon symposium reviewing lessons learned from the Environmental Determinants of Diabetes in the Young (TEDDY) Study, which will begin at 1:45 p.m. in room W415B (Valencia Ballroom). “We will present new findings in Orlando that will change the conversation about type 1 diabetes in youth,” Dr. Krischer said. Read more
It’s been a decade since U.S. and European regulatory agencies began requiring cardiovascular outcomes assessment as an extension of all clinical trials involving diabetes medications. Some researchers and clinicians have asked whether the requirement provides adequate “bang for the buck.” Steven P. Marso, MD, and Darren K. McGuire, MD, MHSc, debated that question Friday afternoon at the Scientific Sessions. Read more
With ongoing research and breakthrough discoveries developing in the diabetes space, health professionals continue to embrace emerging technologies at American Diabetes Association camps, which have served as a lifeline for youth with diabetes and their families for 69 years. Read more
During a Saturday afternoon symposium jointly sponsored by the ADA and the International Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes (ISPAD), four international experts will take a retrospective look at the 1993 Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), reviewing lessons learned from the landmark trial. Joseph Wolfsdorf, MB, BCh, will compare type 1 diabetes treatment prior to the DCCT with current treatment strategies in the U.S. Read more
Islet transplantation has long been seen as an effective alternative to regular insulin injections in type 1 diabetes. Some models have shown limited success in humans, but grafts eventually succumb to rejection and fail. During a Friday afternoon symposium at the Scientific Sessions, eight researchers discussed new strategies that have shown promise in the lab. Eun Young Lee, MD, PhD, discussed xenotransplants in nonhuman primates. Read more
Newer “smart” apps and advanced Bluetooth-enabled diabetes devices are designed to appeal to a broad audience by providing personalized functions and disease management support. Three technology experts, including Adam Brown, BS, will discuss the potential benefits and concerns of these evolving technologies during a Saturday afternoon symposium at the Scientific Sessions. Read more
Current literature suggests that dual antiplatelet therapy is indicated for at least a year after an acute coronary syndrome event in all patients, but it appears to be particularly important in diabetes patients, according to Deepak L. Bhatt, MD, MPH, one of the presenters in a Friday afternoon symposium at the Scientific Sessions. Read more
The mechanisms that cause beta cells to decrease or cease insulin secretion in response to glucose are not clear. It’s not even clear what a physiologically normal complement of beta cells might be, according to Peter C. Butler, MD, one of four researchers who will discuss beta cell dedifferentiation during a Saturday afternoon symposium at the Scientific Sessions. Read more
Maureen Gannon, PhD, Chair of the Scientific Sessions Meeting Planning Committee, provides a preview of the American Diabetes Association’s 78th Scientific Sessions, which will be held June 22-26 in Orlando, Florida. The meeting will feature results from more major diabetes trials than any year in recent memory. Read more
While randomized controlled clinical trials (RCT) are the gold standard for establishing the safety and efficacy of new diabetes treatments, real-world observations can add important information that RCTs may not provide. Lawrence Blonde, MD, is one of five experts who will review the latest real-world diabetes findings and discuss the advantages and limitations of real-world evidence during a Scientific Sessions symposium on Friday, June 22. Read more
Early findings from the Environmental Determinants of Diabetes in the Young (TEDDY) study, the largest and most comprehensive study of events leading up to diabetes in children, have already changed our understanding of type 1 diabetes in youth. The next analysis of genetic and environmental factors affecting the etiology and pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes will likely shift clinical paradigms once again, according to Jeffrey Krischer, PhD, a TEDDY study coordinator. Read more
Final observational follow-up data from the Veterans Administration Diabetes Trial (VADT) will be reported on Sunday, June 24, at the Scientific Sessions. There will almost certainly be more subanalyses of the VADT findings published in the next few years, but this is the final preplanned observational follow-up report, according to Peter Reaven, MD, co-principal investigator of the VADT follow-up study. Read more
Initial results of the Restoring Insulin Secretion (RISE) Study will be reported on Monday, June 25, at the Scientific Sessions. Early findings have not been released, but no one will be surprised to see findings that point to changes in the treatment of prediabetes and early-onset diabetes in adolescents, said Steven E. Kahn, MB, ChB, who chairs the RISE Consortium. Read more
The ADA and the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) will release the first public draft of a new consensus report on managing hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes on Tuesday, June 26, at the 78th Scientific Sessions. It’s the third joint consensus statement on the management of hypertension from the two groups. The initial statement was issued in 2012 and revised in 2015, according to John B. Buse, MD, PhD. Read more
At least three SGLT inhibitors are moving toward Food and Drug Administration submission for type 1 diabetes. During a special symposium that will conclude the Scientific Sessions on Tuesday, June 26, Julio Rosenstock, MD, will present the latest data on empagliflozin from the EASE trial program. Attendees will also hear data on dapagliflozin from the DEPICT trial program and data on sotagliflozin from the InTandem trial program. Read more