Elective liver transplants transform the lives of children born with rare condition
The plight of a five-year-old boy awaiting an urgent liver transplant in the UAE after being born with diabetes has highlighted the importance of early testing.
Details of the child’s health battle were shared on World Diabetes Day on Tuesday to show not all incidents of the disease are lifestyle related.
Most type two diabetes are a by-product of a poor diet and sedentary lifestyle, but the case has underlined why the Arab region is looking at testing in order to give the best chance in life to babies born with life-limiting monogenic diabetes.
More than half a billion people are living with diabetes worldwide, but fewer than four per cent of all diagnoses are monogenic – where genetic mutations inherited from parents lead to diabetes at birth.
Weight loss successful formula
Dr Mohammad Fityan, head of department at the weight management clinic at Burjeel Medical City, said the shortage posed problems for patients.
“It was really frustrating as we could not start diabetes patients on Ozempic,” he said.
“These were patients who really needed it. We had many cases where we were jumping between one medication to another as the patient would tell us it was not available anywhere.”
Typically, patients with type two diabetes would need to take medications to manage their condition for life.
The drug works by mimicking a naturally occurring hormone, which slows digestion and reduces appetite in a similar way to bariatric surgery.
A global shortage changed the way doctors treated their patients, prompting a UAE government crackdown on pharmacies administering Ozempic and other similar diabetes medication for weight loss.
“Changing medication affects patients in a negative way because when we start a specific drug, we are aiming for a certain dose,” said Dr Fityan.
“To avoid significant side effects, we start with a low dose and gradually increase it.
“When we were jumping between different brands, we were just resetting which was a waste of time.”
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