Scientists have found that weekly insulin injections better regulate type 2 diabetes.
- Insulin injections are usually done daily by the patients themselves.
- A new study calls into question this frequency.
- Patients achieved better blood sugar control with once-weekly injections.
In France, more than 3.5 million people are treated with medication for diabetes, i.e. 5.3% of the population, according to Public health France and, according toNational Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm), 90% of diabetics have type 2 diabetes.
Insulin injections to be given several times a day
This pathology usually develops after the age of 20 and is due to poor use of insulin by the body’s cells, according to health insurance. Patients with it have too high blood sugar, hyperglycemia.
There are oral treatments and when these are not effective enough to control the blood sugar level, the doctor may prescribe insulin injections depending on the Vidalwhich will be done by the patient himself, several times a day if necessary.
A study published in the journal JAMA calls into question this frequency. The researchers observed that the injectable anti-diabetic drugs were more effective when they were administered on a weekly basis.
Better blood sugar control with weekly insulin injections
During their work, they divided 588 volunteers, aged 58 on average, and suffering from type 2 diabetes, into four groups. The first received a dose of icodec (of insulin) per week, the second group had a weekly dose of placebo, the third group a daily dose of degludec and the last had a daily dose of placebo.
After 26 weeks, the researchers measured the blood level of glycated hemoglobin (HBA1c which allows assess blood sugar control over a longer period of about two to three months).
Result: this rate was lower in the volunteers of the first group compared to those of the third, which means that a weekly dose would therefore be more effective in treating type 2 diabetes than daily insulin injection.