How much insulin does a patient with type 2 diabetes need for optimal glucose control? It can sometimes be a tricky balancing act to get the dose just right – too much increases the risk of hypoglycaemic episodes and too little risks poor glucose control and the associated long-term complications.In this article we review what the research and guidelines recommend in how to ensure each patient gets the best dose of insulin.
Hitting the spot: injection technique using an insulin pen
This article provides a simple guide to the do’s and don’ts of insulin injection technique, taking you through the steps that patients need to go through to inject their insulin correctly.
Helping patients on insulin to travel safely
People with diabetes need to plan carefully for holidays, especially if they are treated with insulin. Although much of the advice will be the same as for the general population, these patients are more vulnerable and will need to take particular care in looking after themselves to avoid any ill health while away from home.
A practical guide to starting patients with type 2 diabetes on insulin
The prevalence of type 2 diabetes is rising and people are developing the condition at an earlier age. Type 2 diabetes becomes progressively more difficult to control over time, so many people need to start on insulin therapy as the pancreas is no longer able to meet the body’s insulin requirements on its own. In this article,we look at the practical issues involved in helping a patient to start on insulin therapy for their diabetes.
Optimising insulin treatment in primary care
Everyone with diabetes deserves the highest standards of personalised diabetes care, no matter where, when or by whom this care is delivered.
Starting On Nateglinide Or Repaglinide
Cardiac Resynchronisation: A New Approach To Managing Chronic Heart Failure
About 40% of patients with heart failure die within one year of diagnosis,underlining the need for more effective management.Nearly one-third of patients with heart failure may have an abnormality in the electrical conducting system of the heart.In this article,we review cardiac resynchronisation and its role in managing chronic heart failure.
Walking your way to good health
What are the health benefits of walking,and how much should we walk and how often? In this article,we review the evidence on the impact of walking on health, the latest recommendations on walking,how to overcome barriers to walking,how to motivate our patients to start walking and how to keep it going.
Aspirin or Warfarin for Atrial Fibrillation
Editorial
A happy and productive 2009 to all our readers! We hope that as we all face the challenges – and, we hope, joys – that this year will bring, BJPCN can provide the practical and reliable information and advice that you tell us you find so useful.
Triglycerides: Making Sense Of The Sometimes Forgotten Lipid Fraction
The importance of lowering total and LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) in the prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD) is so firmly established that it has,in only a short time, become part of everyday practice for all primary care health professionals.Lipids,of course,come in multiple forms,which include fatty acids,the different forms of cholesterol and triglycerides.Most practitioners have only a sketchy idea of what triglycerides are,what they do and how important they are.Few understand the intricacies of measurement, diagnosis and interpretation,and when – and how – to manage them.The story is complex and involves difficult biochemical and metabolic concepts,so we should begin at the beginning.
Working In Partnership With Patients: Developing A Diabetes Pathway With Local Service Users
This article looks at how a group of patients worked in partnership with North Lancashire Teaching Primary Care Trust (PCT) to produce a patient information leaflet for people newly diagnosed with diabetes (see page 32).The leaflet is intended to act as a guide, giving the new diabetic information and facts to help them,as well as encouraging them to find out more for themselves and enabling them to ask the appropriate questions.
