Good news for diabetes patients: Weekly, not daily, insulin jabs may be enough to control blood sugar levels

A major reason why so many diabetes patients shy away from starting insulin therapy is because they have to take daily shots. But a weekly shot can make things easier.

Diabetes is one disease that has grown steadily over the years in almost all countries of the world. One reason may be an increasingly unhealthy lifestyle. Bad food habits, lack of exercise, stress and anxiety contribute too. Early detection is necessary to prevent complications which can, at times, be quite serious and may even lead to death. Though there is no cure for this condition, you can control your blood sugar levels by seeking timely treatment. Other than oral medication, most diabetics also need daily insulin injections to manage their condition. But injecting yourself every day can be a pain and it is a major reason why so many diabetes patients shy away from starting insulin therapy. But a new once-weekly basal insulin injection demonstrated similar efficacy and safety and a lower rate of low blood sugar episodes compared with a daily basal insulin, according to a phase 2 clinical trial. The study results compared an investigational drug called basal insulin Fc (BIF) with insulin degludec, a commercially available long-lasting daily insulin, in patients with type 2 diabetes.

Weekly doses may make patients more amenable to insulin therapy

In the study, researchers the National Research Institute in Los Angeles, Calif., compared an investigational drug called basal insulin Fc (BIF) with insulin degludec, a commercially available long-lasting daily insulin, in patients with type 2 diabetes. According to them, the results demonstrate that BIF has promise as a once-weekly basal insulin and could be an advancement in insulin therapy. The reduced number of injections with weekly insulin may improve adherence to insulin therapy, which could result in better patient outcomes than for daily basal insulins. Once-weekly dosing also may increase the willingness of patients with type 2 diabetes to start insulin therapy when oral medication alone no longer gives adequate blood glucose control.

Weekly shot achieves long term blood sugar control

The 32-week clinical trial was conducted in 399 patients and sponsored by Eli Lilly and Company. All patients had type 2 diabetes and were previous users of basal insulin combined with oral antidiabetic medications. The patients received random assignments to one of three treatment groups: once-weekly injections of BIF at one of two different dosing algorithms (with different goals for fasting blood glucose levels) or the standard once-daily injections of insulin degludec. One fasting glucose target for patients receiving BIF was 140 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or less, and the other was at or below 120 mg/dL. The fasting glucose target for insulin degludec was 100 mg/dL or less.

Compared with insulin degludec, patients taking BIF achieved similar long-term blood glucose control, as measured by hemoglobin A1c, the researchers reported. Study participants had an average A1c of 8.1 per cent at the beginning of the study and at the end of the study had an average improvement in A1c of 0.6 per cent for BIF and 0.7 per cent for insulin degludec, the data showed.

It reduces hypoglycemia events

Additionally, BIF use resulted in significantly lower rates of hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar (less than 70 mg/dL). Severe untreated hypoglycemia is a dangerous complication that can cause seizures, loss of consciousness and death. Insulin may sometimes trigger this condition. But BIF has "the potential of a flatter and more predictable action than the current daily basal insulins, which may have contributed to the lower rates of hypoglycemia. It also had a generally comparable adverse event profile to that of insulin degludec.

(With inputs from Agencies)