Insulin Pumps

Facts & Figures about Diabetes

Diabetes is reaching epidemic proportions. Worldwide, the number of cases is expected to double to 300 million in less than 25 years. Today, over 5 million people worldwide live with Type 1 diabetes (the more severe form of the disease), of which almost 395,000 are children.
If left untreated, long-term complications of the disease can lead to heart failure, blindness, impotence, kidney failure, amputation, and in many cases death. Tight glycaemic control is central to good health, as proven by numerous studies, including the landmark Diabetes Control and Complications Trial (DCCT), which concluded in 1993.

• India - over 35 million are affected making it the diabetic capital of the world and approx 2 - 3% have Type 1 diabetes
• Every fourth diabetic in the world today is an Indian.
• Indians are genetically more susceptible to diabetes and the number of diabetics in India would go up to 40 million by 2010 and 74 million by 2025
• Diabetes is a life-threatening condition.One in 20 deaths is attributable to diabetes; 8,700 deaths every day; six deaths every minute
• Diabetes has become one of the major causes of premature illness and death in most countries, mainly through the increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Cardiovascular disease is responsible for between 50% and 80% of deaths in people with diabetes.

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes prevents the body from properly using energy from food. The condition occurs when the pancreas produces little or no insulin, a hormone required to sustain life, or when the pancreas makes insulin, but the body resists it.

• Insulin, a hormone required to sustain life
  Insulin is a hormone produced by the Pancreas to aid accessing to the energy stored in the food. Largely this results from the ability of the body, under the influence of Insulin, to release sugar from the food intake, to store it and to use it, when needed, to drive our normal functions.
  

• The normal stability of blood sugar levels
  The normal metabolic process of releasing glucose from the food intake ensures that the amount of sugar in our blood remains within the region of 3.5 to 4.5 mmol/l(60-80 mg/100ml). Insulin levels rise when we have a meal in order to capture the sugar from the food intake. Insulin levels reduce after the processing of the food intake over a period of approximately 2 hours. During the rest of the day, an associated mechanism prevents blood sugar levels from falling below the normal levels by releasing glucose from the body storage areas in fat and tissues.

• The Diabetes disease
  Diabetes is a description of the condition where there is a mismatch between the food intake and the levels of production or utilisation of Insulin.
  • In Type 1 diabetes, the pancreas no longer produces insulin, an important hormone that helps metabolise glucose and supply energy to cells. A person with this condition must administer insulin using injections or an insulin pump.
  • Type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disorder resulting from the body's inability to make enough, or properly use, insulin. Type 2 diabetes is often controlled by diet and exercise, oral medications and, in some cases, insulin. Research indicates that obesity and weight gain are associated with an increased risk of Type 2 diabetes. Insulin pumps have been successfully used to treat Type 2 patients requiring insulin and with poor glycaemic control.

Without an adequate availability of insulin, a person is unable to get energy from food or to keep glucose levels in balance. Poor glucose control can lead to acute complications from hypoglycaemia (low blood glucose) or hyperglycaemia (a condition associated with higher-than-normal blood glucose), which can lead to ketoacidosis, causing coma or death, if left untreated. Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness, kidney failure and amputation, and is a major factor in cardiovascular disease and nerve damage.

Therapy Options

Depending on the type and stage of the disease, different treatment options currently exist:

For people with Type 2 diabetes who do not require insulin administration, the treatment usually mainly consist in:

• Diet and exercise
• Oral medications

For people with Type 1 diabetes, and those with Type 2 diabetes who require Insulin administration, the treatment consists in insulin injection and requires monitoring the blood sugar level. The difficulty lies in making the best match of insulin dosage and food uptake, along with the normal energy requirements of people's day-to-day living.