Prevention of type 2 diabetes: lifestyle changes or pharmacological interventions?

peer reviewedThe World Health Organisation strongly recommends strategies for the prevention of type 2 diabetes, knowing the epidemics of the disease and its strong association with that of obesity. Several intervention studies, in China ("Da-Qing Study"), in Europe ("Malmo study", "Finnish Diabetes Prevention Study") and in the United States ("Diabetes Prevention Program"), showed that lifestyle change are able to reduce by around 50% the incidence of type 2 diabetes in at risk individuals. Various pharmacological approaches have also proven their efficacy in preventing type 2 diabetes, but in most cases with less impressive reductions, between 25% and 35%. It is the case for metformin, acarbose, orlistat or various inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin system. After the report of promising results with troglitazone, large prospective studies are ongoing to test the efficacy of rosiglitazone and pioglitazone in such an indication, two insulinsensitizers of the thiazolidinedione family. We will briefly described the main results of intervention studies to prevent type 2 diabetes in at risk subjects, because of the presence of obesity, impaired glucose tolerance and/or arterial hypertension

Intact cross-talk between insulin secretion and insulin action after postgastroplasty recovery of ideal body weight in severely obese patients.

Most reports investigating the hormonal and metabolic effects of bariatric surgery studied obese subjects after partial weight loss only. Nevertheless, all studies showed significant improvements of insulin secretion, action, clearance and inhibition of its own secretion, although the parallel kinetics of all these changes remained questionable. Using the intravenous glucose tolerance test, we demonstrated a full normalization of insulin secretion, action on glucose metabolism and clearance in eight obese women who recovered and maintained ideal body weight following gastroplasty. Reciprocal changes were observed between postglucose acute insulin secretion and insulin-mediated glucose disposal so that the so-called disposition index (product of these two variables) remained unchanged after vs before gastroplasty in those individuals with normal glucose tolerance. These favourable results should encourage obtaining a drastic and sustained weight loss in patients with severe obesity at risk of developing type II diabetes

Obesity and type 2 diabetes

peer reviewedObesity is an epidemic disease associated with numerous cardiovascular risk factors as diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, hypertension. Insulin resistance seems to be an important promoter for the development of most of these abnormalities. Besides genetic background, obesity, especially abdominal adiposity, is by far the most important factor for the development of type 2 diabetes. The treatment of a diabetic obese subject begins with diet and regular physical activity, eventually with a psychological support. In case of failure of such lifestyle approach alone, addition of drug therapy should be considered. It may include pharmacological agents able to promote weight loss (orlistat, sibutramine, possibly rimonabant) and/or antihyperglycaemic compounds capable of reducing insulin resistance (metformin, glitazones, acarbose). In case of severe/morbid obesity complicated with type 2 diabetes not well controlled with medical means, bariatric surgery is the only treatment that can induce an important and sustained weight loss, associated with marked improvement of metabolic control and amelioration of overall prognosis

Approches pharmacologiques de prévention du diabète de type 2.

L’augmentation rapide de la prévalence du diabète de type 2 impose la mise en place de stratégies de prévention. Outre les mesures hygiéno-diététiques, essentielles, diverses approches pharmacologiques ont apporté récemment la preuve d’une certaine efficacité chez les sujets à risque de par la présence d’un excès pondéral et/ou d’une diminution de la tolérance au glucose. C’est le cas de plusieurs antidiabétiques oraux comme la metformine, l’acarbose ou encore la troglitazone. C’est également le cas de médicaments anti-obésité comme l’orlistat et, peut-être aussi, la sibutramine. L’inhibition du système rénine-angiotensine par un inhibiteur de l’enzyme de conversion ou par un antagoniste sélectif des récepteurs AT1 peut aussi, outre protéger contre les complications cardiovasculaires, prévenir l’apparition d’un diabète de type 2. Enfin, le rôle des médicaments hypolipidémiants reste controversé. De nouvelles études prospectives sont en cours pour confirmer ces résultats

Bariatric surgery: 10-year results of the Swedish Obese Subjects Study

peer reviewedThe 10-year results of the prospective, controlled Swedish Obese Subjects Study were recently reported in the New England Journal of Medicine by L. Sjostrom and colleagues. This trial compared obese subjects who underwent gastric surgery and contemporaneously matched, conventionally treated obese control subjects. The follow-up rate for laboratory examinations was 74.5 percent at 10 years. At that time, data of 627 patients of the control group (mean age of 48 years, body mass index of 41 kg/m2) were compared to those of 641 patients who were submitted to surgery (banding n = 156, vertical banded gastroplasty n = 451 and gastric bypass n =34). At 10 years, the body weight had increased by 1.6 percent in the control group and decreased by 16.1 percent in the surgery group (p < 0.001), and similar changes were observed for waist circumference (+2.8 percent versus -10.1 percent, respectively, p < 0.001). Energy intake was lower and the proportion of physically active subjects higher in the surgery group than in the control group throughout the observation period. Ten-year rates of recovery from diabetes, hypertriglyceridaemia, low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, hypertension, and hyperuricaemia were more favourable in the surgery than in the control group. The surgery group had lower 10-year incidence rates of diabetes, hypertriglyceridaemia, and hyperuricaemia (but not of hypertension) than the control group. In conclusion, as compared with conventional therapy, bariatric surgery appears to be a valuable option for the treatment of severe obesity, resulting in long-term weight loss, improved lifestyle, and, except for hypercholesterolaemia that was not significantly affected, amelioration in cardiovascular risk factors that were elevated at baseline. Obtaining long-term data concerning the effect of weight loss on overall mortality and on the incidence rates of myocardial infarction, stroke, and cancer remains a key-objective of this landmark study

Physical exercise for preventing obesity, promoting weight loss and maintaining weight management

peer reviewedObesity is a multifactorial disease making difficult the determination of the precise role of one specific factor such as physical activity or sedentary. Nevertheless, numerous arguments, derived from epidemiological observational studies or from randomized controlled interventional trials, support a favourable role of regular physical activity in the control of body weight. Physical activity contributes to prevent the occurrence of weight excess, especially in children or adolescents, to obtain a satisfactory weight loss, in general in combination with reduced-energy diets, and to maintain long-term weight loss. In addition, physical activity improves both the metabolic profile and health of obese subjects

Pharmacy-clinics medication of the month. Orlistate (xenical)

peer reviewedOrlistat (tetrahydrolipstatin), launched by Roche under the trade name Xenical, is a selective inhibitor of pancreatic and gastro-intestinal lipases. It reduces the digestion of dietary fat and its resorption through digestive mucosa by around 30%. It is indicated, at a dose of 3 x 120 mg/day (one dose with each meal) and together with a moderately low-calorie and low-fat diet, for the treatment of obesity. It has been shown, in placebo-controlled two-year trials, to almost double the number of obese subjects who succeed in loosing at least 10% of initial body weight. Independently, it contributes to decrease serum cholesterol levels by 6-10%. Because of its mechanism of action, this drug can induce intestinal side-effects which tend to decrease with time and with the reduction of fat intake, thus improving diet compliance