Early Diagnosis of Diabetes Mellitus in Patients With Cystic Fibrosis

Cystic Fibrosis, Diabetes Mellitus

Is oral therapy with Repaglinide equivalent to insulin therapy with three daily injections with respect to blood glucose control, weight and pulmonary function over 2 years in patients with cystic fibrosis and secondary diabetes mellitus? That is the question examined in the phase III trial.

Diabetes mellitus may be present in patients with cystic fibrosis (mucoviscidosis) starting in the second decade of life. The prevalence increases rapidly with increasing age. As life-expectancy increases in CF, CF-related diabetes will be diagnosed more frequently in the future. Negative consequences of secondary diabetes in cystic fibrosis include: * Catabolic metabolism * Weight loss * More frequent / more severe infections * Deterioration of pulmonary function * Reduced life-expectancy * Diabetic micro vascular complications (retinopathy, nephropathy, neuropathy) Up to date, no data are available to answer the question, whether secondary diabetes in CF should always be treated by insulin therapy. Several centres report the successful management of CF-related diabetes using oral anti-diabetic drugs at least for some years. Oral therapies would be less invasive for a patient group which is highly traumatised by a very demanding therapy (multiple drugs including antibiotics, pancreas enzymes, bronchodilators, mucolysis, in addition to physiotherapy, regular inpatient iv-antibiotic therapy etc, finally lung transplants in a subgroup of patients).

Austria, France, Germany, Italy