New treatment for children with type 2 diabetes

Type 2 diabetes was previously seen only in middle age or older adults. However, with the rise of obesity in children, it is now being increasingly diagnosed in diagnosed in young people.

Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease in which the pancreas does not make enough insulin to control the level of glucose (sugar) in the blood or when the body is unable to use insulin effectively. 

It can lead to serious complications if a person does not receive treatment. According to the WHO, type 2 diabetes has increasingly been reported in children and adolescents recently, so much so that in some parts of the world type 2 diabetes has become the main type of diabetes in children.

What Are the Symptoms?

At first, there may be no symptoms. Over time, you may notice:

• Unexplained weight loss 
• Hungry or thirsty a lot, even after eating
• Dry mouth 
• Peeing a lot
• Fatigue 
• Blurred vision 
• Heavy breathing
• Slow healing of sores or cuts
• Itchy skin 
• Numbness or tingling in the hands or feet

Take your child to the doctor if you notice any of these symptoms.

Is type 2 diabetes serious?

Type 2 diabetes is serious and can potentially cause long-term complications. With more young people developing type 2 diabetes, complications such as heart disease and kidney disease are also likely to occur at a younger age.

Treatment:

• Currently, the only two approved treatment options for paediatric type 2 diabetes patients in most countries are metformin and insulin. 
• However, more than half of young patients do not achieve glycaemic control on metformin alone, even when combined with lifestyle interventions, and treatment with insulin has considerable side effects such as weight gain, or a high risk of hypoglycaemia. 
• Therefore, there is a medical need for alternative treatment options for children and adolescents with type 2 diabetes.

New treatment for children with type 2 diabetes:

• EMA’s human medicines committee has recommended granting an extension of indication to Victoza (liraglutide) to include the treatment of children and adolescents aged 10 years or older with type 2 diabetes. This medicine is already approved for use together with diet and exercise in adults with type 2 diabetes, on its own or as an add-on to other diabetes medicines.
• Victoza is the first non-insulin, besides metformin, to get a positive opinion for paediatric use for type 2 diabetes. The active substance in Victoza, liraglutide, is an ‘incretin mimetic’. This means that it acts in the same way as incretins, a group of metabolic hormones that stimulate an increase of the amount of insulin released by the pancreas in response to food. This helps with the control of blood glucose levels. 
• Liraglutide has been used in adults for approximately ten years, so there is an extensive amount of data available in particular with regards to safety.
• A study was conducted to know efficacy and safety of Victoza in children and adolescents.
• The most common side effects with Victoza were nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, headache and abdominal pain.