Letter From The Editor

Often when we think of cutting edge technology or modern methods of care the private sector tends to get all the attention and it seems that often government agencies only catch up years later. However, when it comes to healthcare innovations, the Veterans Health Administration often leads the pack. This …

When Steve and I put this week’s Clinical Mastery Series issue together I kept thinking of the old Fram oil filter commercials: the ones where the mechanic came on and said, “You can pay me now or pay me later,” referring to the relatively small cost of replacing an oil …

The fallout from recent FDA decisions concerning new medications for diabetes and obesity continues to be a topic of discussion among medical professionals. Last week I was at the annual meeting of the American Society of Consultant Pharmacists in Orlando and  noticed that a lot of attention on diabetes care …

When I received this week’s Diabetes Clinical Mastery Series’ articles and contents from our staff, I’d just finished seeing patients. It had been a frustrating day: I had spent considerable time trying to explain why diabetes has so many complications to one patient; teaching another patient who had lost their …

The elections are over and the voters have spoken … or have they? I thought that most of the dissatisfaction with what has been happening the past three to four years has been about the economy. Isn’t that why we had a change in leadership two years ago and isn’t …

As patients progress through the stages of diabetes from the simple use of Metformin to complex basal/bolus insulin regimens there are many stops along the way. This week Dr. Edelman and Dr. Henry focus on multiple shot insulin regimens for Type 2 patients. We know that these patients are losing …

Just this week the CDC announced that as many as 1 in 3 U.S. adults could have diabetes by 2050 if current trends continue: that’s not 1 in 3 born after 2000, that is 1 of every 3 adults period. It is estimated that there will be 420 million residents …

Recently I was teaching a diabetes class and one of the attendees was a 32 y/o man, newly diagnosed with an A1c of 10.7 and a casual bg of 385 mg/dl. He had lost 35 lbs over the past 3 months without even trying. His doctor sent him to the …

By now every one of us has heard that the once weekly version of exenatide, Bydureon, has been delayed by a request for a new study by the FDA. However, many of our colleagues seemed to have forgotten that the twice daily version of exenatide, Byetta, and the once daily …

I had hoped that this week’s Clinical Mastery edition would have included information from the Duration Trials for the once weekly form of exenatide, Bydureon. Many of us had been anticipating approval of this revolutionary treatment for diabetes, and were anxious to have this new treatment option for our patients. …