Diabetes developments
A little more than a century ago, diabetes was a death sentence.
That all changed in January 1922, when a 14-year-old boy in Toronto with type 1 diabetes became the first patient to receive insulin.
In the years since, researchers have advanced their understanding of diabetes mellitus, a chronic disease and metabolic disorder that results in elevated blood glucose levels. An estimated 38.4 million people in the United States have diabetes, or 11.6% of the population, according to the National Diabetes Statistics Report.
Of them, about 90% to 95% have type 2 diabetes. An additional 97.6 million U.S. adults have prediabetes, meaning that they have higher than normal blood sugar and are at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
“Diabetes is a major contributor to the burden of cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, blindness and risk for amputation,” said Joshua J. Neumiller, PharmD, CDCES, FADCES, FASCP, president-elect for health care and education at the American Diabetes Association. “Fortunately, therapeutic advances (medications and technologies) and greater public awareness about these risks and the importance of managing blood glucose and other cardiovascular disease risk factors can help reduce an individual’s risks for diabetes-related complications.”
Geolyn Gonzalez, chief sales marketing officer at Total Resources International, said she is seeing an increased technology adaptation for diabetes management. “These new advances in technology are improving the quality of life for people living with diabetes,” she said.
[Related: Which states have highest obesity, diabetes, heart disease, stroke mortality rates?]
The rapidity of advances in diabetes care can be difficult to believe. The Food and Drug Administration approved the first continuous glucose monitoring system with a fully implantable glucose sensor and compatible app for adults in June 2018.
“The diabetes treatment landscape has changed dramatically over the last five to 10 years, with agents from the GLP-1 receptor agonist and SGLT2 inhibitor classes now recommended for people with type 2 diabetes and established or high-risk for cardiovascular disease, heart failure or kidney disease to protect the heart and kidneys,” Neumiller said. “Over-the-counter CGM devices are also now available for people with prediabetes and people with diabetes not using insulin to provide insights on how medications, diet and physical activity impact their blood glucose.”
The breadth and continual refinement of diabetes testing supplies has also led to better patient outcomes. The Droplet Micron 34G x 3.5mm is the shortest and thinnest pen needle ever and has addressed one of the principal barriers to effective therapy: injection discomfort, said Carl Ward, general manager at HTL-Strefa.
Brandon Faber, director of sales and marketing for Allison Medical, maker of the SureComfort Brand of Insulin Pen Needles and Syringes, said that fierce competition means that beyond quality products, companies also have to provide a consistent experience.
“The diabetic end users can count on the same quality of products and customer care they have experienced and enjoyed for years,” Faber said.
Faber added that consistency is important at the supplier level, too. “The space behind the pharmacy is very crowded,” he said. “Competition is tight. You have to separate yourself and stay consistent and gain the trust of the leaders at the chains and independents.”
Sarah Hanssen, vice president of sales and marketing for UltiMed Inc., said that pharmacists have to be mindful of other topical issues that could affect patient outcomes, such as rising out-of-pocket costs, the FDA’s safety alert about plastic syringes made in China and the recent 100% tariff on syringes and needles from China. A growing number of consumers are concerned about the environment and willing to pay more for a product with sustainable packaging.
“They’re looking for easy solutions to keep needles out of the public waste stream,” Hanssen said. “We see a desire to responsibly dispose of sharps, as evidenced by consumers returning to their pharmacy with makeshift sharps container solutions like a plastic bag or soda bottle full of used sharps.”
The UltiGuard Safe Pack dispenses 100 new pen needles along with a sharps container built right into the packaging.
[Related: Ozempic Conundrum: Holy grail or Pandora’s box?]
“The UltiGuard Safe Pack is specifically designed to safely contain used needles, preventing accidental injuries and ensuring sharps are disposed of in a manner that protects public and environmental health—all from home,” Hanssen said.
Advancements in diabetes care from a provider perspective and better awareness or understanding of the chronic disease are creating new opportunities for the market, too. Gonzalez said Total Resources International will be launching four new items at Walmart and Walgreens this year, starting with the Treat Urself Diabetic Wound Care featuring SILVEX wound gel and silicone foam pads to treat foot and leg ulcers.
“We want consumers living with diabetes to be educated on wound care management and have innovative products to treat their wounds,” Gonzalez said. “We also want them to feel empowered to care for their wounds themselves, from the comfort of their own home.”
Thanks to the array of products on the pharmacy shelf and behind the counter, managing diabetes is a lot more personal. “Education and knowledge are essential for people to optimally live with and manage diabetes,” Neumiller said. “It is important for people living with diabetes to communicate closely with their diabetes care team about their management plan, goals and available treatment options.”
