High-voltage electrical pulses to the upper region of the small intestine in a minimally invasive procedure can significantly improve type 2 diabetes, researchers reported at the Digestive Disease Week meeting.
The magnitude of improvement is comparable to diabetes benefits seen with gastric bypass surgery, particularly in patients who receive the highest-dose electrical pulses, according to researchers.
“This first-of-its-kind study demonstrates that non-thermal pulsed electric field energy treatment of the duodenum can significantly and durably improve ... insulin resistance and beta cell function,” the main body processes involved in type 2 diabetes, Richard Pratley, MD, of the AdventHealth Diabetes Institute in Orlando, Florida, who worked on the study, said in a statement.
As nutrients move from the stomach into the small intestine, the cells of the duodenum play a crucial role in glucose regulation. Typically, in type 2 diabetes, the duodenum is inflamed and dysfunctional. Delivery of the electric pulses triggers the body to regenerate healthy cells that can help control blood sugar levels.
The 51 patients with obesity and type 2 diabetes who participated in the trial of the Endogenex Pulsed Electric Field System (ReCET) showed significant improvements in insulin sensitivity and pancreatic beta-cell function at 12 weeks, with these improvements persisting through 48 weeks, the researchers reported. Patients also had significant improvements in blood sugar control and body weight.
The researchers are now testing the procedure in a pivotal trial in overweight individuals with type 2 diabetes inadequately controlled by non-insulin glucose-lowering medications.
While the current studies are looking at blood sugar control and weight loss, study leader Barham Abu Dayyeh, MD, of Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles said the treatment is likely to also work for type 2 diabetes in patients who are not overweight. “We believe any patient who has type 2 diabetes, is struggling to maintain control of their disease, and is progressing toward (needing multiple diabetes medications) or insulin will be target candidates."