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Good News for Diabetics

I asked my friend how his diabetes was doing. "Very much better, thank you." He said "I am adding a new insulin subcutaneously to my insulin pump and my sugar levels are much more normal." That's the first I had heard of the new insulin called Lispro (LISS-PROE trade name Humalog) insulin. The name is intriguing and I'll tell you why.

Regular insulin molecules tend to clump in twos and also in groups of six. One molecule (or monomer) insulin is rapidly absorb, hexamer insulin is not. Variations in the structure of insulin were sought that would not stick together. Some, however, did not work to reduce blood sugar and others caused cancer in animals. In one, insulin now called Lispro the amino acid proline on the B/chain position 28 was switched with lysine (the "li" of the name) on position B29. Sticking together was reduced by a factor of 300. This new insulin given under the skin reaches peak action in a few minutes, compared to 2 hours for regular insulin. It's action lasts less than one hour instead of several after it reaches high levels in the periphery. We are getting closer to the way nature produces insulin for the body. This allows one to exercise two hours after a meal with much less risk of severe low blood sugar. When periodic shots of regular insulin are used to try to get an even sugar level, severe low blood sugar attacks occurred three times as often as with Lispro insulin.

Strict control of blood sugar in patients with diabetes has been shown to reduce the risk of the eye and kidney complications which can lead to blindness or the need for dialysis.

Insulin Lispro is used mainly in prescriptions involving multiple daily insulin doses, and is injected within 15 minutes before a meal instead of half an hour before with regular insulin. This insulin (in contrast to all others) needs a physician's prescription. It is thought that the smoothest control of blood sugar may be with insulin Lispro combined with a long acting insulin such as insulin Isophane or a new one called insulin HOE 901. A new prolonged acting insulin may combine insulin Lispro with Protamine as NPL insulin. Draw insulin Lispro into the syringe first. It is stored in the refrigerator and should not be frozen.

Overall, the patient related factors such as motivation, and knowledge of the disease are probably more important to the diabetic than the type of insulin used, but insulin Lispro treatment reduces after meal high blood sugar episodes, as well as episodes of low blood sugar and is more convenient for timing to meals. It's more like the body's normal insulin production in non-diabetics, but it costs more and all of it's side effects are not yet known. Insulin Lispro increases diabetics overall satisfaction with treatment.

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See related Patient Topics About Your Medicines, Diabetes, Endocrine System (Hormones), Food, Nutrition and Metabolism, Immune System/AIDS, Procedures and Therapies or Seniors' Health.

See related Provider Topics About Your Medicines, Diabetes, Endocrine System (Hormones), Food, Nutrition and Metabolism, Immune System/AIDS, Procedures and Therapies or Seniors' Health.

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