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Study to help find low-cost treatment of diabetic patients

Experts from a specialised institute in Karlsburg, Germany, made the announcement last Tuesday at the Al Jarf campus of Ajman University for Science and Technology (AUST).

The study was carried out by the Diabetes Services Centre (DCC) in Karlsburg in conjunction with the AUST Network and Khalifa Hospital in Ajman. The experts announced that treating diabetics with the technique they have developed is 50 per cent cheaper than traditional treatment options for diabetes.

Dr Eckhard Salzsieder, from Institut für Diabetes “Gerhardt Katsch”, in Karlsburg, was in Ajman in April to announce the results of the first phase of this pilot study titled: “Prospective, randomised, open study in insulin treated diabetic UAE volunteers”.

The study used the Constant Glucose Measurement System CGMS/KADIS that Dr Eckhard said had substantially reduced treatment cost per diabetic patient by as much as Euro 6,000 and improved patients’ quality of life when it was first introduced in Germany 15 years ago.

Attending the presentation last week were officials of the UAE Ministry of Health, Dr Abdel Mo’ti Younis, Administrative Director of Khalifa Hospital in Ajman and Dr Abdel Azeem Ahmad from the AUST Network.

Dr Saeed Salman, President of AUST Network, praised the efforts of the German experts for their invaluable role in carrying out what is in fact the first study of its kind in the region, adding that working closely with the MoH and the DCC in Karlsburg, the AUST Network has reaffirmed its strong cooperative ties with the ministry of health.

He said the study has been followed up and viewed with great interest by His Highness Shaikh Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Ajman, since the start of the project in April.

The study has taken into account the kind of lifestyle prevalent in the UAE and its impact on the manifestation of diabetes among the population. The study showed that treatment of diabetes through the implementation of the KADIS programme greatly reduce complications of diabetes and that the DCC in Karlsburg can work through the AUST Network with local hospitals towards implementation of KADIS in the UAE.

Implementation of this treatment system in Germany has served to save hundreds of millions of dollars in treatment costs each year. Dr Abdel Moti said that the number of diabetics in the UAE has already exceeded 25 per cent of the adult population, which is considered a high number when compared to other parts of the world.

The study involved 18 eager volunteers, all insulin dependent type one and type two diabetics, who agreed to have an electronic device implanted in their body to monitor their blood glucose levels throughout the day and transmit the data collected to the DCC in Germany for analysis.

The data was also sent to Khalifa Hospital where doctors could better understand the specific requirements for each patient and determine the best treatment and life-style adjustments that suits each patient, thus allowing a more personalised treatment regimen.

Out of the 18 selected diabetic patients who agreed to take part in the study, 50 per cent were expatriates and 50 per cent UAE nationals, 12 females and six males, seven of which suffer from type one diabetes while 11 suffer from type two diabetes. The volunteers ranged from 20 to 45 years of age and the duration of the disease in all the volunteers ranged between eight and nine years.

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