No Easy Cure for Diabetic Children

Ron Winslow:

The only pill approved in the U.S. for treatment of children with type 2 diabetes is proving surprisingly ineffective, according to a new study, heightening worries about the fast-growing and largely preventable disease.

The research, reported Sunday, is one of the first long-term studies to test the effectiveness of drugs for diabetic children--estimated in the U.S. to number in the tens of thousands. It tested three different drug-based regimens aimed at controlling the disease and found that only about half the participants successfully controlled their blood sugar--despite relatively good compliance.

Researchers said the findings suggested a majority of youth with the disease may require more than one oral medication--or resort to insulin injections--within a few years of diagnosis.

The disappointing results, some of which caught researchers by surprise, underscore the daunting challenges in treating the condition, which had been viewed as an adult disease until it emerged among adolescents in the past 15 to 20 years alongside rising rates of obesity.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at May 2, 2012 1:48 AM
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