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Media Inquiries: 434-924-5679 U.Va. HEALTH SYSTEM TO SEARCH FOR BEST TREATMENT TO PREVENT OBESITY-RELATED DIABETES IN CHILDREN |
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Researchers at the University of Virginia Children’s Medical Center will examine the effects of three different treatment options for overweight children who are at risk for developing type-2 diabetes. An intensive program combining individual and group sessions to promote lifestyle changes and the popular diabetes drug Metformin will be compared to the current standard of care, which is to provide one-time advice on diet and exercise. The researchers’ goal is to learn which treatment best helps children loose weight and reduce their diabetes risk. Dr. Milagros Huerta, assistant professor of pediatrics, co-medical director of the U.Va. Children’s Fitness Clinic and principal investigator of the study, also will examine whether these treatments will help reduce children’s risk for heart disease. Artherosclerosis, the buildup of cholesterol within artery walls, starts in childhood. “These conditions were once thought of as adult diseases. Now we’re seeing them rise in children because of unhealthy diets and sedentary lifestyles,” Huerta said. “The national Diabetes Prevention Program study demonstrated that in adults with pre-diabetes, intensive lifestyle changes and Metformin prevented type 2 diabetes in 58 percent to 33 percent of cases respectively. It is very important for us to determine if these treatments also may be useful to prevent type-2 diabetes in children.” The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), one of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), awarded Huerta $700,000 to conduct the study, which is currently enrolling overweight children, 10 to 18 years of age. Participants will be assigned randomly to one of the three treatment groups and followed over a six-month period. The intensive lifestyle program will be provided through the Children’s Fitness Clinic, which is a part of the U.Va. Children’s Medical Center. The clinic offers a multi-disciplinary, team approach to help overweight children work towards increasing physical activity and improving their dietary habits. Huerta’s study is similar to a national research project called Treatment Options for type-2 Diabetes in Adolescents and Youth or The TODAY study, also funded by NIH-NIDDK. The TODAY study looks at different diabetes treatment options in children already diagnosed with type-2 diabetes and involves 12 research centers nationwide. “The number of research projects devoted to type-2 diabetes in children, calls attention to the escalating problem of childhood obesity and the resulting medical conditions that it causes in children,” Huerta said. “It is very important to identify overweight children at risk for type-2 diabetes early in order to prevent the complications associated with this chronic disease.” Huerta will be working in collaboration with physicians, Jerry Nadler, chief of endocrinology and metabolism and William Clarke, chief of the Division of Pediatric Endocrinology. April 8, 2004 |