Availability of insulin must be increased to reduce diabetes
Staff Reporter :
Experts have emphasized the need to increase the availability of analog insulin to reduce the severe risks faced by thousands of children and adolescents with type-1 diabetes in low-income countries like Bangladesh.
For the first time in the subcontinent, comparative research between Human-1 insulin and analog insulin has been conducted, and the findings were presented following the study.
On Friday, National Professor A.K. Azad Khan, President of the Diabetic Association of Bangladesh, shared the research findings at an event held in Dhaka.
Dr. Bedoura Jabeen, Head of the Pediatric Diabetes Care & Research Center (PDCRC), delivered the welcome address.
Presenting the research findings were Dr. Luo Jing, Global Principal Investigator from the University of Pittsburgh, Dr. Aimhin Ensbro and Abigail Fould from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and Bangladesh’s leading diabetes specialist Professor Dr. Faruk Pathan, among others.
Speakers said the clinical trial compared Human-1 and analog insulin for children and adolescents with type-1 diabetes in low-income countries like Bangladesh. They noted that this research will play a major role in improving the quality of life of thousands of such diabetic children.
For the first time in Bangladesh, this research was conducted by the Pediatric Diabetes Care & Research Center (PDCRC) under the Diabetic Association of Bangladesh, in collaboration with the University of Pittsburgh. It is described as a landmark study for Bangladesh that will help build a foundation for more evidence-based diabetes care in the future.
The speakers added that older forms of human insulin are still predominantly used in Bangladesh. Due to price and availability issues, modern analog insulin remains out of reach for many, even though it is highly necessary. They said the study provides strong evidence that will support national policy formulation, inclusion of analog insulin in the World Health Organization’s Essential Medicines List, and global discussions on insulin accessibility.