Letter from the Editor: Pioglitazone or Diet and Exercise? Which do you recommend?

This week’s lead article about the use of pioglitazone to prevent the onset of diabetes in high risk patients has lead researcher Ralph DeFronzo, MD, very excited and he even went on to say “It’s a blockbuster study.”

However not everyone agrees with Dr. DeFronzo.

Timothy S. Harlan, MD, medical director at Tulane University Medical Group, stated that he favors more emphasis on diet and exercise. He also complained, “Insurance companies will willingly reimburse for medicines like this, yet they will not invest that same level in helping people do what works better, and that’s lifestyle changes.”

Be sure you read the article and let us know whether you agree with Dr. DeFronzo or Dr. Harlan.

The weather is getting warmer and most of us are thawing out from a long, hard winter that seemed like it would never end. Now it is time to get back outside and get active again. Our insulin-using patients often have a hard time adjusting back to their warm weather regimens and hypoglycemia is usually the result. This week Dr. Sheri Colberg, PhD, prepares us for the calls to come by discussing, How to Best Manage and Prevent Exercise Low Blood Sugars.

We have refreshed all our CME and CE to give you the best and latest in great opportunities to learn more, and earn credit at the same time, all for free. Check out the revamped page at CE and CME Opportunities.

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Announcements:

dLife.com: April 3, 7PM ET on CNBC

Topics: A visit with a Native American family that has been hit hard by diabetes; an award winning photographer whose fear of blindness defined his career; how “tweens” deal with diabetes and growing independence; and demystifying dietary supplements. Sundays on CNBC at 7 PM ET, 6 PM CT, and 4 PM PT. Catch up on dLife.com.

TCOYD Conference and Health Fair, Tucson, Arizona, April 2, 2011

Join Special Guest Urban Miyares — Veteran, Entrepreneur, Motivational Speaker — for a full day event also including: state-of-the-art technologies and advances in diabetes care; afternoon workshops; and physical activities for everyone.

Please answer this week’s poll: Do your patients use the latest technology to help them manage their diabetes?

View last week’s poll results.

Check out this week’s “Test Your Diabetes Knowledge” question!

Dave Joffe, Editor-in-chief