Effects of carbohydrate counting on glucose control and quality of life over 24 weeks in adult patients with type 1 diabetes on continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion: a randomized, prospective clinical trial (GIOCAR).

OBJECTIVE: Few studies have assessed the efficacy of carbohydrate counting in type 1 diabetes, and none have validated its efficacy in patients who are treated with continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII). The aim of our study was to test the effect of carbohydrate counting on glycemic control and quality of life in adult patients with type 1 diabetes who are receiving CSII. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Sixty-one adult patients with type 1 diabetes treated with CSII were randomly assigned to either learning carbohydrate counting (intervention) or estimating pre-meal insulin dose in the usual empirical way (control). At baseline and 12 and 24 weeks, we measured HbA(1c), fasting plasma glucose, BMI, waist circumference, recorded daily insulin dose, and capillary glucose data, and administered the Diabetes-Specific Quality-of-Life Scale (DSQOLS) questionnaire. RESULTS: Intention-to-treat analysis showed improvement of the DSQOLS score related to diet restrictions (week 24 - baseline difference, P = 0.008) and reduction of BMI (P = 0.003) and waist circumference (P = 0.002) in the intervention group compared with control subjects. No changes in HbA(1c), fasting plasma glucose, daily insulin dose, and hypoglycemic episodes (<2.8 mmol/L) were observed. Per-protocol analysis, including only patients who continuously used carbohydrate counting and CSII during the study, confirmed improvement of the DSQOLS score and reduction of BMI and waist circumference, and showed a significant reduction of HbA(1c) (-0.35% vs. control subjects, P = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Among adult patients with type 1 diabetes treated with CSII, carbohydrate counting is safe and improves quality of life, reduces BMI and waist circumference, and, in per-protocol analysis, reduces HbA(1c).

Frequency-modulated electromagnetic neural stimulation enhances cutaneous microvascular flow in patients with diabetic neuropathy.

AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of frequency modulated electromagnetic neural stimulation (FREMS), a recently developed safe and effective treatment of painful diabetic neuropathy, on cutaneous microvascular function. METHODS: Thirty-one patients with painful neuropathy were enrolled in a randomised, double-blind, crossover FREMS vs. placebo study; each received two series of 10 treatments of either FREMS or placebo in random sequence within no more than 3 weeks. Patients were studied at baseline, end of FREMS and placebo series, and after 4 months of follow-up. Cutaneous blood flow was measured by laser doppler flowmetry and partial tissue tension of oxygen (TcPO2) and carbonic anhydride (TcPCO2) by oxymetry at the lower extremities in basal resting conditions and as incremental response after thermal stimulation. RESULTS: Crossover analysis showed no consistent differences between FREMS and placebo. After 4-month follow-up, a 52% increase of cutaneous blood flow was observed in resting conditions (P=.0086 vs. baseline), while no differences were observed as incremental flow after warming; compared with baseline, no significant differences were observed for TcPO2 and TcPCO2, both in resting conditions and as incremental response to warm. CONCLUSION: These results indicate that 10 treatments with FREMS may induce an enhancement of microvascular blood flow measurable at 4 months of follow-up. The findings of this study will need to be confirmed in a larger, adequately powered study (ClinicalTrial.gov Id: NCT00337324).