Endocrine Month in Review: October 2022

The last weekend of each month, our editorial team compiles a list of our most popular content from the past month for a month in review recap. The October 2022 month in review recap includes a pair of studies that paint a grim picture related to the burden of diabetes in the US, a trio of new obesity guidelines/reports from major national and international organizations, and news related to the latest developments in the world of continuous glucose monitoring.

Diabetes Highlights in October 2022

Included in our top stories of the month list for October 2022 is a pair of studies describing different aspects of the burden diabetes places on people in the US.

• In the first study, which was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, investigators leveraged data from the CURE-CKD registry to provide fellow clinicians with a snapshot of the changing rates of chronic kidney disease in people with diabetes in the US. Although results point to decreases in rates during the last half-decade, investigators called the results “troubling” given the growing prevalence of diabetes.
  
  Read More: Study Details "Troubling" Rates of Chronic Kidney Disease in People with Diabetes
  
  
• In the second study, which was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, investigators used data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 2021 National Health Interview Survey to describe the prevalence of insulin rationing among insulin users in the US. In the study, investigators found 16.5% of users reported some form of rationing in the past year, which investigates pointed out is representative of 1.3 million people nationwide.
  
  Read More: Report: More Than 1 Million Insulin Users May Have Rationed Supply in Past Year

New Obesity Guidance/Documents

Within a 2-day span from October 20-21, 2022, a trio of articles were published by numerous national and international organizations aimed at providing clinicians with new data and/or recommendations for management of obesity and cooccurring conditions.

• Released on October 20, the American Gastroenterological Association's guidelines for obesity management with pharmacological therapy endorsed semaglutide 2.4 mg, phentermine-topiramate ER, liraglutide 3 mg, and naltrexone-bupropion ER as first-line medical therapies in addition to diet and exercise for weight loss in people with obesity.
  
  Read More: American Gastroenterological Association Releases Guidelines for Pharmacologic Management of Obesity
  
  
• On October 21, the Obesity Society and National Kidney Foundation published a special joint report outlining hurdles, optimization strategies, and research needs for the management of coexisting obesity and chronic kidney disease identified during a multispecialty, scientific workshop held in April 2021.
  
  Read More: Obesity Society, National Kidney Foundation Release Report on Managing Coexisting Obesity and Kidney Disease
  
  
• On October 21, the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery and the International Federation for the Surgery of Obesity and Metabolic Disorders published new metabolic and bariatric surgery guideline considerations, which represent the first major updates to guidance for metabolic and bariatric surgery since a National Institutes of Health document released in 1991.
  
  Read More: American, International Organizations Debut New Bariatric and Metabolic Surgery Guidelines

CGM News

Never before have the advancements and advantages provided by diabetes technology been so evident. During the month of October, there were multiple items of note that made headlines related to continuous glucose monitoring technologies, including the global rollout of Dexcom’s G7 CGM system, new flash monitoring data from the FreeStyle Libre 2 system in NEJM, and a joint consensus report from a pair of the world’s largest diabetes organizations.

• In a special online event hosted by Dexcom on October 4, the company announced the initial global rollout of their Dexcom G7 CGM system. During the event, the company noted the system was now available in United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Austria, and Hong Kong, the company’s announcement, with plans for a rollout in New Zealand and South Africa in the coming weeks.
  
  Read More: Dexcom Announces Global Launch of Dexcom G7 Glucose Monitoring System
  
  
• A randomized controlled trial comparing intermittently scanned glucose monitoring with the FreeStyle Libre 2 flash glucose monitor against usual care, data from the FLASH-UK trial, which were published in the New England Journal of Medicine on October 5, suggest use of the flash glucose monitoring was associated with significant reductions in HbA1c levels at 24 weeks and improvements in time in target glucose range.
  
  Read More: Flash Glucose Monitoring Can Improve Glycemic Control, Time in Range in Type 1 Diabetes
  
  
• Published on October 6, the joint consensus report from the American Diabetes Association and European Association for the Study of Diabetes provides an overview of the benefits and safety concerns related to automated insulin delivery systems as well as offers a multitude of evidence-based recommendations on the subject.
  
  Read More: American Diabetes Association, EASD Publish Joint Consensus Report on Automated Insulin Delivery