Diabetes is a chronic condition where the body does not produce or effectively use insulin. A lack of insulin leads to raised blood glucose (sugar) levels, which can cause heart disease and stroke, kidney disease, nerve damage and other severe complications.
Keck Medicine of USC has launched a Phase 2 clinical trial investigating the effectiveness of a new outpatient, nonsurgical endoscopic procedure in stabilizing blood glucose levels for patients.
“Currently, the only treatment for diabetes not managed with lifestyle changes are oral medications or, in the case of advanced disease, insulin injections, both of which can be costly or have side effects,” said Luke Putnam, MD, lead investigator of the clinical trial and a gastrointestinal surgeon with Keck Medicine. “If this therapy is proven effective, it could eliminate the need for medication or insulin, or potentially prevent disease progression so it does not lead to organ failure and other debilitating conditions.”
This innovative procedure is designed for patients before they require insulin and targets the duodenum, the first part of the small intestine that works with the pancreas to regulate insulin and blood glucose levels.
Recent data suggests the duodenum plays an important role in glucose regulation, and in patients with Type 2 diabetes, the cells lining the duodenum become damaged.
The clinical trial is testing a device inserted via an endoscope into the duodenum that ablates (removes) the poorly functioning cells through precise, controlled electrical pulses.