Obesity And Diabetes: Toward A Surgical Solution: An Interview With Francesco Rubino, MD

Article preview from Medtech Insight - September 1, 2011

A new position statement from the International Diabetes Federation that endorses bariatric surgery as a medically indicated therapeutic option for diabetes represents an important philosophical shift for this field, according to Franceshttp Rubino, MD, chief of gastrointestinal metabolic surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College.

Obesity And Diabetes: Toward A Surgical Solution: An Interview With Francesco Rubino, MD

Article preview from Medtech Insight - September 1, 2011

Despite ongoing advances in surgical tools and techniques for the treatment of obesity, the field remains frustrated by access and coverage issues and a dearth of effective minimally invasive treatment options. As a result, obesity researchers are now taking a back-to-basics approach to improve their understanding of the physiological triggers behind obesity.

The effort has already yielded fascinating new information about the relationship between bariatric surgery and neurohormonal signaling in the body, with important implications not only for obesity but also for related chronic diseases, including diabetes.

Research shows that bariatric surgery can have an immediate and profound effect on insulin resistance and diabetes symptoms, even before significant weight loss occurs. Based on these findings, the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) issued a position statement in April 2011 recommending bariatric surgery as an appropriate treatment option for certain people with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and obesity–the first time any major international organization had made recommendations on the use of bariatric surgery as a therapy for T2DM.

To find out more about what the IDF position statement means for the bariatric surgery market, Medtech Insight spoke with Francesco Rubino, MD, chief of gastrointestinal metabolic surgery and associate professor of surgery at Cornell University's Weill Cornell Medical College.

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