Short term intensive insulin therapy improves insulin secretion significantly in type 2 diabetic patients

To investigate the effects of short-term (1 week) intensive insulin therapy, on glycemic control, insulin secretion, and insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetic patients, an open prospective study was conducted in sixteen type 2 diabetic patients receiving diet therapy alone or treatment with oral hypoglycemic agents. Of the study subjects, 8 patients were treated with insulin, the remaining 8 patients served as the control group. The metabolic parameters were evaluated once before treatment and once during one of the following treatments : glycemic control as measured by 1,5-anhydro-D-glucitol (1,5-AG) and area under curve of glucose (AUCglucose), insulin secretion as measured by area under curve of daily serum insulin (AUCinsulin), and insulin sensitivity as measured by the K index of the insulin tolerance test (K(ITT)). Post-treatment plasma glucose (AUCglucose) and 1,5-AG levels in patients who had received intensive insulin therapy were comparable to those of the control group. A statistically significant increase in AUCinsulin occurred after intensive insulin therapy for just 1 week, while no change occurred in the control group. Insulin sensitivity (K(ITT)) did not improve significantly in patients treated with insulin or patients from the control group. These results indicate that intensive insulin therapy for 1 week improves insulin secretion remarkably but has little effect on insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetic patients. Clinically, this suggests that intensive insulin therapy for one week might be one of the initial treatments of choice for such patients.