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news.60% patients taking Levemir once-daily reached the American Diabetes Association's recommended average blood sugar level
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Denmark-based healthcare company Novo Nordisk has reported encouraging results from the Titrate study showing that Levemir, taken once-daily, substantially lowered average blood sugar. Approximately 60% of patients taking Levemir once-daily reached the American Diabetes Association’s recommended average blood sugar level.
Patients who had not previously used insulin and had a starting average blood sugar level (A1C) of less than 9%, adjusted their dose of Levemir to reach specific fasting blood sugar targets of 70-90mg/dl or 80-110mg/dl. Fasting blood sugar is the amount of sugar in the blood as determined by a blood test (called FPG) taken first thing in the morning after not eating for at least eight hours. The study showed that Levemir taken once-daily substantially lowered patients’ A1C levels after 20 weeks for both FPG targets tested.
In the study, 64.3% of patients in the 70-90mg/dl FPG target treatment group and 54.5% of patients in the 80-110mg/dl FPG target group reached the ADA recommended A1C level of less than 7%. A1C levels in the 70-90mg/dl group decreased by 1.2% to an average A1C of 6.77%; A1C levels in the 80-110mg/dl group decreased by 0.9% to an average A1C level of 7%.
The open-label Titrate study was a prospective, randomized, controlled study to examine the effect of patients self dosing of Levemir once-daily using two FPG targets on blood sugar control. In the study, 244 type 2 diabetes patients taking oral antidiabetes drugs, who had never before used insulin, were assigned to one of two treatment groups: using 70-90mg/dl or 80-110mg/dl as their fasting blood sugar targets.
Alan Moses, global chief medical officer of Novo Nordisk, said: Good blood sugar control is important in managing diabetes, and the more active a role patients can play, the better. This study is exciting because it showed that Levemir at a once-daily dose helped these patients manage their condition, and in doing so, helped them achieve substantial A1C reductions.