Positive studies pile up for GI Dynamics

November 12, 2009 by MassDevice staff

The bariatric products maker trumpets another study showing that its EndoBarrier gut liner helps reduce the symptoms of Type 2 diabetes.

Positive studies pile up for GI Dynamics

GI Dynamics released another study showing that its EndoBarrier gut liner, originally aimed at weight control, can also help alleviate the symptoms of Type 2 diabetes.

In a study published in Diabetes Technology & Therapeutics, the Lexington, Mass.-based bariatric products maker's device, a plastic sleeve used to line a portion of the small intestine to prevent the absorbtion of food, was shown to deliver near-normalized glycemic control in obese patients with Type 2 diabetes.

The study, in which 12 patients received the device (which is inserted endoscopically through the esophagus) and 6 underwent sham endoscopies, also showed that patients treated with the EndoBarrier reduced their average blood glucose levels by a mean of 2.4 percent after 24 weeks, compared with 0.8 percent for the control group. The EndoBarrier group also lowered other diabetic factors including fasting blood glucose and weight.

Last month GI Dynamics touted another study indicating the effectiveness of the device in promoting weight loss and helping to control diabetes in morbidly obese patients. An earlier, smaller study, of 10 patients implanted with the gut liner and with a flow restrictor at the outlet of the stomach into the small intestine, showed that the combination also helped morbidly obese patients lose weight.