Diabetes

SILVER SPRING, Md. — The Food and Drug Administration has approved a drug for a rare disorder that previously had no approved medical therapies, the agency said.

The FDA announced the approval of Menlo Park, Calif.-based Corcept Therapeutics' Korlym (mifepristone) for endogenous Cushing's syndrome, a disorder that results from overproduction of cortisol, a steroid hormone that increases blood-sugar levels.

WOONSOCKET, R.I. — Physicians in 35% of cases involving more than 250,000 newly diagnosed diabetes patients did not follow the American Diabetes Association/European Association for the Study of Diabetes consensus guidelines for recommended treatment, according to a new CVS Caremark study.

LAS VEGAS — Allscripts and MyCareTeam have teamed up to launch an integrated diabetes management system, the companies announced at the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society's annual conference and exhibition.

BOSTON — Joslin Diabetes Center and American Well will collaborate on a telehealth initiative that seeks to improve and expand diabetes patients' access to high-quality care.

The telehealth services will be powered by American Well's Online Care technology and will "[apply] a transformative healthcare innovation in support of our mission of improving the lives of people struggling with this disease," Joslin Diabetes Center president and CEO John Brooks said.

BOSTON — It seems insulin production and beta cell functioning may persist despite the onset of Type 1 diabetes, according to research conducted at the Massachusetts General Hospital and published in the March issue of Diabetes Care.

PHILADELPHIA — CVS Caremark's chief healthcare strategy officer on Friday outlined how the company's integrated offerings — retail pharmacy, pharmacy benefit management and retail clinics — are helping patients achieve better health by working to increase medication adherence and targeting behaviors to improve treatment for chronic diseases during a panel discussion at the Wharton Health Care Business Conference.

NEW YORK — Oral blood samples drawn from periodontal inflammation can be used to measure HbA1C levels, a factor that indicates a patient's diabetes status, according to a New York University study.

BEDFORD, Mass. — Insulet and LifeScan have entered a partnership through which the latter's OneTouch blood-glucose monitoring technology will be integrated into the former's OmniPod Personal Diabetes Manager.