/ 18 February 2008

Diabetes breakthrough

A study by researchers at Monash University in Australia has found that gastric banding surgery has a profound effect on one of society’s biggest health issues: diabetes.

The study, published in Journal of the American Medical Association, found that obese patients with Type 2 diabetes who underwent gastric banding were five times more likely to have their diabetes go into long-term remission than patients who engaged in conventional weight-loss therapies, such as a controlled diet and exercise.

Gastric banding is a medical procedure where a band is placed around a patient’s stomach to reduce appetite and food intake.

The four-year study, led by Associate Professor John Dixon and Professor Paul O’Brien from Monash University’s Centre for Obesity Research and Education, monitored 60 volunteers for two years who underwent weight loss of more than 10% of their body weight.

Dixon said of those who underwent gastric banding surgery, 73% achieved remission for Type 2 diabetes, compared with 13% of those who underwent conventional therapy.

“Our study presents strong evidence that obese patients with a body mass index greater than 30 with Type 2 diabetes need to lose a significant amount of weight to improve their overall health and glycemic management,” Dixon said.

“Our study shows that gastric banding surgery can assist those patients to achieve this — and with sustained results.”

O’Brien said obesity and Type 2 diabetes were strongly linked and that, combined, they presented one of the greatest public health problems facing our community. “We found that the amount of weight loss was a key determinant of effectiveness. Most of those losing 10% of their total weight had remission of the diabetes. Few who lost less did so.”

Dixon said the study also found patients who lost substantial weight could also reduce use of medications for controlling blood pressure and lowering blood fats.

“We found that after two years, the surgical group displayed a four-times greater reduction in glycated haemoglobin, which can be an indicator of poorly controlled diabetes,” Dixon said. — www.monash.edu.au/news/