Insidermedicine in 60 - January 29, 2008

From North Carolina - Caffeine may cause the sugars of patients with diabetes to become unstable. A study of 10 patients with type 2 diabetes, none of whom were taking insulin, showed that drinking 4 cups of coffee per day resulted in an 8% increase in blood sugar. The rise was especially apparent following meals; blood sugars were elevated by 9% after breakfast, 15% after lunch, and 26% after dinner.

From Copenhagen - A new study fails to detect a significant difference between 2 commonly used types of drug-eluting stents in patients with heart attack and angina. In a randomized clinical trial involving over 2,000 patients, the risk of a major adverse cardiac event was approximately 10% in both the sirolimus-eluting and paclitaxel-eluting groups. No difference was detected in the development of stent thrombosis rates.

And finally, from Baltimore - A new study evaluating the effect of smoking on lung function in patients with cystic fibrosis may shed light on how genetics and environmental factors combine to influence how effectively we breathe. Researchers evaluating over 800 subjects noted that secondhand smoke exposure was associated with decreased lung function for all measures of lung function studied. In addition, certain mutations in the cystic fibrosis causing gene determined the magnitude of the effect.

For Insidermedicine in 60, I'm Allison Chow.

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News & Politics

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