Early diabetes interventions may also reduce heart disease risk

Lifestyle change, medication both linked to cholesterol improvements

2013-08-28

(Press-News.org) Chevy Chase, MD—Two treatments that slow the development of diabetes also may protect people from heart disease, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).

Researchers examined the effect that making intensive lifestyle changes or taking the medication metformin had on cholesterol and triglyceride levels. The study, part of the National Institutes of Health's Diabetes Prevention Program, found that both treatments induced positive changes in the level of particles that carry cholesterol and triglycerides through the blood stream. These changes could lower the chances of plaque building up in blood vessels.

"Cardiovascular disease is the most significant cause of death and disability in people with diabetes," said the study's lead author, Ronald Goldberg, MD, of the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine. "Our findings demonstrate that the same therapies used to slow the onset of diabetes also may help allay the risk of heart disease."

The randomized clinical trial analyzed blood samples from 1,645 people with impaired glucose tolerance. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups – one taking the medication metformin, another taking a placebo and a third undergoing an intensive lifestyle modification program. Researchers compared baseline blood samples from the start of the study to samples taken a year later to measure the interventions' effects. The study used advanced techniques to obtain a detailed picture of the various particles in the blood.

People who took part in the lifestyle modification program had lower levels of triglycerides and the particles that carry this kind of fat in the blood after a year. Both the metformin and lifestyle interventions were linked to reductions in the number of small low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles, which carry cholesterol that may contribute to plaque formation, and increases in high-density lipoproteins (HDL), the form of cholesterol that reduces heart disease risk.

"Preventing or slowing the development of diabetes with these treatments also improves the cholesterol and triglyceride profile of a person's blood," Goldberg said. "Thanks to the added benefits of existing diabetes interventions, we stand a better chance of lowering the risk of heart disease in this patient population."

### Other researchers working on the study include: M. Temprosa of George Washington University; J. Otvos of LipoScience, Inc.; J. Brunzell and S. Marcovina of University of Washington; K. Mather of Indiana University School of Medicine; R. Arakaki of University of Hawaii; K. Watson of University of California, Los Angeles; E. Horton of Joslin Diabetes Center; and E. Barrett-Connor of University of California, San Diego.

The article, "Lifestyle and Metformin Treatment Favorable Influence Lipoprotein Sub-fraction Distribution in the Diabetes Prevention Program," will be published online on Aug. 27.

Founded in 1916, The Endocrine Society is the world's oldest, largest and most active organization devoted to research on hormones and the clinical practice of endocrinology. Today, The Endocrine Society's membership consists of over 16,000 scientists, physicians, educators, nurses and students in more than 100 countries. Society members represent all basic, applied and clinical interests in endocrinology. The Endocrine Society is based in Chevy Chase, Maryland. To learn more about the Society and the field of endocrinology, visit our site at http://www.endocrine.org. Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/#!/EndoMedia.

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Low inflammation may explain healthy metabolic status in some obese people

2013-08-28

Chevy Chase, MD—Reduced levels of inflammation may explain how some obese people are able to remain metabolically healthy, according to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM). Obesity generally is linked to a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease. Some people who are obese, however, do not develop high blood pressure and unfavorable cholesterol profiles – factors that increase the risk of metabolic diseases. This phenomenon is described as metabolically healthy obesity. Although estimates ...

Harmful particles in Icelandic volcanic ash fell first, says new research

2013-08-28

The type of particles which are most harmful to jet engines were the first to fall out of the Eyjafjallajökull ash plume following the volcano's eruption in 2010, delegates at the Goldschmidt conference will be told today (Wednesday 28th August). The research, led by Dr Bernard Grobety of the University of Fribourg in Switzerland, will help to mitigate the impact of future volcanic eruptions on air travel. Dr Grobety's team analysed samples of volcanic ash taken at different points in its journey from the volcano across Europe. They found that the two different forms ...

New approach to celiac testing identifies more Australians at risk

2013-08-28

Contact: Vanessa Solomon solomon@wehi.edu.au 61-393-452-971 Walter and Eliza Hall Institute Pam Lord pam@canalecomm.com 619-849-6003 Canale Communications New approach to celiac testing identifies more Australians at risk Australian researchers have developed a new approach to detecting coeliac disease, revealing this immune disorder is far more common than previously recognised. In a study of more than 2500 Victorians the researchers combined traditional antibody testing (measuring the immune response to gluten) with an assessment of specific genetic ...

Investigational oral regimen for hepatitis C shows promise in NIH trial

2013-08-28

In a study of an all-oral drug regimen, a majority of volunteers with liver damage due to hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection were cured following a six-month course of therapy that combined an experimental drug, sofosbuvir, with the licensed antiviral drug ribavirin. The results showed that the regimen was highly effective in clearing the virus and well tolerated in a group of patients who historically have had unfavorable prognoses. Scientists from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the NIH Clinical Center, parts of the National Institutes ...

Frontiers news briefs: Aug. 26

2013-08-28

Frontiers in Psychology Interesting and useful musings are associated with a happy mood Mind wandering can be a sign of mental wellbeing, provided that your off-task musings are interesting and useful even if not related to the task at hand, finds a new study in Frontiers in Psychology. The negative effects of mind wandering on performance and mood have recently received much attention, for example in the much-publicized study A wandering mind is an unhappy mind (Science 2010, 330:932). But Michael S. Franklin and colleagues here use a similar but more detailed experimental ...

Mayo Clinic: High-tech imaging contributing to overdiagnosis of low-risk thyroid cancers

2013-08-28

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- An increasing gap between the incidence of thyroid cancer and deaths from the disease suggests that low-risk cancers are being overdiagnosed and overtreated, a study from the Mayo Clinic Center for the Science of Health Care Delivery finds. The study appears in the current issue of the British Medical Journal. "High tech imaging technologies such as ultrasound, CT and MRI can detect very small thyroid nodules many of which are slow growing papillary thyroid cancers, says the study's lead author Juan Pablo Brito, M.B.B.S. an endocrine fellow and health ...

European hunter-gatherers owned pigs as early as 4600 BC

2013-08-28

European hunter-gatherers acquired domesticated pigs from nearby farmers as early as 4600BC, according to new evidence. The international team of scientists, including researchers at Durham and Aberdeen universities, showed there was interaction between the hunter-gatherer and farming communities and a 'sharing' of animals and knowledge. The interaction between the two groups eventually led to the hunter-gatherers incorporating farming and breeding of livestock into their culture, say the scientists. The research, published in Nature Communications today (27 August), ...

New surgical tool may help sleep apnea sufferers, Wayne State research finds

2013-08-28

DETROIT — A Wayne State University researcher's innovative use of a new tool may make surgery a more viable option for sufferers of obstructive sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS). Ho-Sheng Lin, M.D., a fellow with the American College of Surgeons and professor of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery in the School of Medicine and Karmanos Cancer Institute, reported promising results in the July issue of The Laryngoscope, for treating sleep apnea using transoral robotic surgery (TORS), a technique whose safety and tolerability have recently been established for removing ...

Contagious savings

2013-08-28

A commercial health insurer's large scale demonstration program designed to improve quality and lower costs for subscribers also lowered costs for Medicare patients who used the same health care providers but were not covered by the plan. "These findings suggest that provider groups are willing—and able—to make systemic changes that result in higher-value care for patients across the board," said author J. Michael McWilliams, assistant professor of health care policy and medicine at Harvard Medical School and a practicing general internist at Brigham and Women's Hospital. The ...

Control scheme dynamically maintains unstable quantum system

2013-08-28

A simple pendulum has two equilibrium points: hanging in the "down" position and perfectly inverted in the "up" position. While the "down" position is a stable equilibrium, the inverted position is definitely not stable. Any infinitesimal deviation from perfectly inverted is enough to cause the pendulum to eventually swing down. It has been known for more than 100 years, though, that an inverted pendulum can be stabilized by vibrating the pivot point. This non-intuitive phenomenon is known as dynamic stabilization, and it has led to a broad range of applications including ...

First evidence of olaparib maintenance therapy in patients with newly diagnosed homologous recombination deficient positive/BRCA wild-type ovarian cancer: real-world multicenter study

Early diabetes interventions may also reduce heart disease risk

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: