VBLOCK Shows Success with Diabetes, Hypertension and Weight Loss

A 3-year study of a product meant to help patients dealing with a wide range of conditions including diabetes, hypertension, and weight loss showed positive results according to manufacturer EnteroMedics, Inc.

Study results were presented at the 19^th Meeting of the International Federation for the Surgery of Obesity and Metabolic Disorders in Montreal. The DM2 ENABLE Study, described in a statement from the company was “an international, open-label, prospective, multi-center study designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of VBLOC vagal blocking therapy.”

The therapy was given via the Maestro Rechargeable (RC) System to 28 patients who had been diagnosed with diabetes. The Maestro RC System is a pacemaker-like device used to deliver

VBLOCK vagal blocking therapy, which is “designed to intermittently block the vagus nerves using high-frequency, low-energy, electrical impulses, which helps control both hunger and fullness.”

The most prominent data points in the study were percentage of excess weight loss, blood sugar, fasting plasma glucose, and blood pressure after using the device.

Data from the study showed that at 36 months patients’ HbA1c levels dropped from 7.6% at baseline to 7.0% (p = 0.04). The study also showed that “83% of the patients who were being treated with one or more diabetic medications at the start of the trial reported no change, a decrease or discontinuation of their medication suggesting that the progression of their diabetes had been modified.”

Improvements were also shown in plasma glucose, with patients seeing their numbers drop from 155.6mg/dl at baseline to 131.5 mg/dl. Excess weight also dropped by 24.3%, according to the company. Patients with hypertension also saw their blood pressure drop 7.3 mm/Hg and maintained as a result of using the device.