Aggressive weight reduction treatment in the management of type 2 diabetes

Most patients with Type 2 diabetes are significantly overweight, and diet-induced weight loss can provide marked improvement in their glycaemic control. As conventional therapy combining diet and exercise usually has a poor long-term success rate, more aggressive weight reduction programmes have been proposed for the treatment of severely obese diabetic patients, including very-low-calorie diets, anti-obesity drugs and bariatric surgery. Very-low-calorie diets usually have a remarkable short-term effect, and energy restriction and weight reduction are positive factors for the glycaemic control of obese diabetic subjects. However, the long-term efficacy of these methods remains doubtful since weight regain is a common phenomenon. Although anti-obesity (anorectic) drugs may help patients to follow a restricted diet and lose weight, their overall efficacy on body weight and glycaemia is generally modest, and their long-term safety still questionable. Interestingly, serotoninergic anorectic agents have been shown to improve both the insulin sensitivity and glycaemic control of obese diabetic patients independently of weight loss. Bariatric surgery may be helpful in well-selected patients. The correction of weight excess after successful gastroplasty fully reverses the abnormalities of insulin secretion, clearance and action on glucose metabolism present in markedly obese non-diabetic patients, and allows interruption or reduction of insulin therapy and antidiabetic oral agents in most obese diabetic patients. In conclusion, weight loss is a major goal in treating obese patients with Type 2 diabetes, and aggressive weight reduction programmes may be used in selected patients refractory to conventional diet and drug treatment. However, long-term prospective studies are needed for more precise determination of the role of such a strategy in the overall management of obese diabetic patients.