Insulin infusion pumps in the treatment of diabetes

The long-term complications of diabetes mellitus remain a serious public health problem in the Western nations. Much current research focuses on methods of insulin treatment designed to provide near-normal glycemic control throughout the day with the intention of preventing or delaying the onset of the angiopathic consequences of preventing or delaying the onset of the angiopathic consequences of diabetes. Recent work has shown that open-loop insulin infusions (that is, insulin administered by an infusion pump without feedback control) can result in near-normal blood glucose levels in juvenile-onset or Type I diabetics. The extracorporeal infusion pumps used in such studies have their won physical and psychological drawbacks, however. More recent studies have attempted similar degrees of control using totally implantable insulin infusion pumps; several such studies are being carried out in patients with adult-onset or Type II diabetes, the predominant type of diabetes afflicting the elderly.