Diabetes is a serious disease. Every day in America: · 230 people with diabetes undergo amputation; · 120 people enter end-stage kidney disease programs; and · 55 people go blind from diabetes.But, research studies have shown that people with diabetes can greatly reduce their risk of complications. For example, new cases of adult blindness are up to 90 percent preventable with regular doctor visits and proper screening and care. The future is a daunting place for anyone. For children with diabetes, it promises complications their peers have never considered. These children already know the day-to-day challenges of living with a chronic disease.Diabetes affects every organ system in the body. It is a leading cause of kidney failure, adult blindness, nontraumatic amputations, nerve damage, stroke and heart attack.Diabetes kills one American every three minutes

New ways of treating diabetes can reduce the risk of severe complications, officials of the American Diabetes Association said.`Implementing the new standards should enable many more people with diabetes to lower their blood sugar levels closer to normal and reduce their risk of potentially life-threatening complications.

A noninvasive tool that measures the skin’s autofluorescence could help doctors determine whether people with diabetes are beginning to develop serious complications, according to a study published in the November issue of Diabetes Care. Researchers in the Netherlands found that illuminating a patient’s lower arm with a fluorescent tube accurately reflects vascular damage caused by the accumulation of advanced glycosylation end products

People with a common type of diabetes can significantly delay the onset or progression of serious complications by increasing insulin injections and tightly controlling their blood sugar level, diet and exercise, a new report indicates.Doctors called it the most important discovery for diabetics since insulin.”Until a cure for diabetes is eventually developed, it will, in fact, revolutionize treatment recommended for all patients with diabetes.People with the most severe form of diabetes can significantly delay serious complications through unusually intense control of their blood sugar levels, according to a landmark study released Sunday.Intensive treatment appeared to delay the onset of complications and slow their progression when compared with a more standard regimen for controlling blood sugar, said Dr. Phillip Gorden, director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease.

Widespread diabetes cases prompt serious study Sep. 1 Two years ago, when researchers first recruited Margarita Pena for a study on diabetes prevalence in the Rio Grande Valley, she was at risk but hadn’t developed the disease. So she kept up her regular consumption of pan dulce, candy and tortillas as researchers monitored her insulin levels. A year later, Pena, 58, became a statistic. She developed type II diabetes, which forced her to make changes. “Now, I take good care of myself, ” Pena, ……   .

Family takes case for diabetes funding to Washington Ainsley Basham, 4, is not at all shy when it comes to telling people about her diabetes. Her parents, Greg and Scottie Basham, of Halls, say their little girl has gotten all too familiar with the disorder since she was diagnosed with Type I, or juvenile-onset, diabetes at age 2. “She tells everyone about her diabetes, ” Ainsley’s mom said.

Americans appear to be handling diabetes better, U. S. says For years, public health officials have urged people to do simple things to manage their diabetes: Watch blood sugar levels, eat a healthy diet and exercise. Their message, it turns out, appears to be working. Figures released by the government Saturday show that far fewer Americans with diabetes are ending up in the hospital or developing kidney failure–a sign that diabetes care has improved. “W

CU TEAM DISCOVERS CRUCIAL CLUE TO DIABETES, HEALTH SCIENCES SCIENTISTS FIND PROOF OF TRIGGER IN TYPE 1 Denver researchers have identified a crucial target in the immune-system attack that leads to Type 1 diabetes, which afflicts more than 1. 3 million Americans. In Type 1 diabetes the body turns against itself and destroys insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. For years, researchers have tried to determine what prompts this autoimmune assault. Disrupting the first steps could lead to therapies that block the disease, formerly known as juvenile-onset diabetes.

DIABETES CARE GAP WIDENS IN U. S. At a time when fast-growing diabetes and obesity rates are eroding the nation’s health, doctors who specialize in those problems are in short supply–and becoming scarcer. A shortage of endocrinologists in South Florida and around the nation is forcing some people with metabolic disorders to wait months for appointments and may discourage family doctors from sending patients to specialists, say physicians and patient advocates. “You have an aging population……

People with Diabetes are at high risk from various health problems such as:

• Heart Disease
• Strokes
• Eye Disease – Possible Blindness
• Nerve Damage – Neuropathy
• Amputation of foot or leg
• Kidney Problems
• Gum Disease
• Loss of teeth

Another health problem associated with diabetes involves the feet, as Diabetes is one of the major causes for lower limb amputation in the year 2004.

Amputation is obviously the last resort concerning problems of the feet, but it is surprising how a small cut or abrasion can lead to such dramatic results in diabetic patients.

Why is the Foot at Risk?

Persistent high blood glucose levels can eventually damage the body’s nerves, causing a loss of sensation (neuropathy). Nerve damage can also cause pain in the legs, arms and hands creating problems in people’s everyday lives. Your GP or Podiatrist should check your feet on a yearly basis, which should include a sensory exam to check for loss of feeling.

Small cuts or abrasions on the neuropathic foot can go unnoticed if daily foot checks are not performed. The cut can easily become infected, which in turn leads to an infected ulceration and could eventually result in the loss of the lower limb. Therefore the importance of daily foot checks, foot care & Diabetes in general cannot be underestimated.

High Risk Factors Leading to Diabetic Foot Ulcers

A small percentage of diabetic patients develop foot ulcerations, some of which may lead on to amputation. The foot is at a higher risk of ulceration if the individual suffers from conditions such as vascular disease or neuropathy. However there are many other factors that can increase risk of ulcers such as: -

• Cold feet or absent foot pulses
• History of Foot Problems
• Foot Deformities
• Limited mobility
• Poor circulation
• Inappropriate shoes
• Uncontrolled blood sugar levels

A painless abrasion or corn can steadily progress to a distressing foot ulcer, and if left untreated skin deterioration may occur.

Medical Home Products (Pink Sheets: MHPT), is a provider 1 borderline diabetes symptom   of medical self-test kits and diabetics supplies, a release said. The company is based in St. Petersburg and employs six. It was founded two years ago.

The company’s president Paul Mathis, declined to disclose financial details about the transaction or the revenues of Fort Lauderdale-based Strictly Diabetics.

That company was a desirable target because it has Medicaid licenses in 23 states and Medicare licenses around the nation, Mathis said.

“They also have a pretty good client base,” he said.

The deal is the company’s first step in a strategy to grow its 1 borderline diabetes symptom business through a combination of organic expansion and aggressive acquisitions along an established product line and customer base, the company said in a release.

The company’s fulfillment and call center operations, along with its combined purchasing power should provide a significant increase in revenues as well as enable it to achieve cost reductions while increasing margins, the release said.

The total cost of diabetes in the United States is $132 billion with direct medical cost representing $92 billion and indirect cost (disability, work loss, premature mortality) accounting for $40 billion, the company said citing 2002 research by the Lewin Group Inc. 1 borderline diabetes symptom

In a groundbreaking medical development, Japanese 1 borderline diabetes symptom scientists have reversed diabetes in a 27-year-old woman by injecting her with insulin-making cells from her 56-year-old mother.

The advance, which has sparked worldwide interest, was reported Monday in the Lancet, a British medical journal.

Though results have not yet been replicated, the case establishes proof in principle 1 borderline diabetes symptom that insulin-producing cells from living donors may one day become an important treatment for diabetes, a chronic disease that afflicts 18 million Americans.

Cautious Optimism  1 borderline diabetes symptom
“It’s quite exciting,” said Dr. Bob Goldstein, chief scientific officer for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

He added a note of caution, however, observing that “this is a case of one” and “we need much more experience before we can draw conclusions” about its significance.

Although many parents 1 borderline diabetes symptom of diabetic kids would want to donate part of their pancreas “tomorrow” if it would help, “this is not ready for use in children,” Goldstein advised.

The Japanese patient, who had diabetes for a dozen years, has been symptom-free for two months after receiving an injection of pancreatic islet cells from her mother Jan. 19 at Kyoto University Hospital, the report said.