Patients in a clinical study who had bariatric surgery saw sustained improvements in symptoms of Type II diabetes out to 3 years after the procedure, some reporting complete diabetes remission, researchers said.
Newly unveiled results from the STAMPEDE clinical trial, sponsored by Johnson & Johnson‘s (NYSE:JNJ) Ethicon subsidiary, showed that patients with mild to severe obesity and Type II diabetes experienced lasting improvements in signs of diabetes and other cardiovascular risk factors, lessening or even eliminating their reliance on drugs.
The findings add to a growing body of evidence in support of weight-loss surgery in treatment of diabetes, although many clinicians generally treat the procedure as a sort of last resort where other types of management have failed.
"Ethicon-funded research, including clinical studies like STAMPEDE, has contributed to a tipping point in the scientific discussion around obesity treatment, placing bariatric surgeons on the leading edge of a paradigm shift toward surgical solutions for chronic disease states," Ethicon medical affairs director Dr. Elliott Fegelman said in prepared remarks. "To change the practice of medicine, consistent, cost-effective outcomes must be demonstrated in many clinical settings over the long term, particularly in the case of T2DM. Our continued collaboration with leading bariatric surgeons and investment in long-term research is leading to new approaches to care that stand to provide potentially significant benefits to patients, reduced costs to healthcare systems, and powerful new solutions in controlling the global health challenges of obesity and diabetes."