People with type 2 diabetes could significantly improve their HbA1c levels by switching to a 24-hour wearable insulin delivery device, research suggests.
The device is the Veritas V-Go, which is worn on the body and continuously administers insulin through the day. It also allows bolus doses to be given for meals without needing to inject.
According to this new study, 71 per cent of those who switched from insulin injections to the V-Go device achieved an HbA1c of below 64 mmol/mol (8%) or a reduction in HbA1c of at least 1%.
The V-Go device has been specifically designed for people with type 2 diabetes and addresses the fact that some people with type 2 are not comfortable giving themselves injections at meal times. The device therefore confers some of the benefits of an insulin pump.
As part of the Evaluating V-go Insulin Delivery In Type 2 Diabetes (EVIDENT) study, led by Howard Courtenay Harrison Jr, MD of Endocrinology Consultants in Virginia, 89 participants with type 2 diabetes and a mean age of 59 years were asked to try the system.
Eighty-four per cent of the participants had previously been injecting insulin at least twice a day and had HbA1c levels of 64 mmol/mol (8%) or above.
After 15 weeks of treatment the participants also reported a reduction in mean insulin total daily dose requirements.
“We attribute this success to improved insulin adherence as well as to insulin being continuously infused and readily available for bolus dosing,” said the researchers.
They added that the V-Go could potentially become an important piece of kit to help people control type 2 diabetes because even minor insulin reductions could be beneficial to patients’ health.
Harrison and colleagues now plan additional analyses to determine the long-term benefits of the system in people with type 2 diabetes.
The findings of the trial were unveiled at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists’ annual meeting.
