Hormone Infusion Works in Older Individuals

Researchers have found a new way to help elderly patients with type 2 diabetes. A continuous infusion of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) seems to help control glucose levels in the blood without lowering glucose too far. In order to test the safety and efficacy of GLP-1, the researchers evaluated 18 type 2 diabetics who were 75 years old on average. The group was randomly assigned to their usual course of oral treatment or to continuous GLP-1 infusion administered by a small portable pump. After 12 weeks of treatment, the researchers found that long-term glucose control remained stable in both groups. As for the occurrence of hypoglycemia, the study showed 87 episodes of hypoglycemia in the control group, compared with only 1 in the GLP-1 group.