By kristalamb |
On March 30th, 2018 the much anticipated awardees were announced for the CIHR/JDFR innovative clinical trials multi-year operating grant to progressively remove the burden from the lives of persons with Type-1 Diabetes (T1D). Of the eight research groups that applied, three were funded with each receiving up to a maximum of $3,000,000 over 4 years. Diabetes Action Canada co-investigators Dr. Gillian Booth and Dr. Remi Rhabasa-Lhoret were among the awardees, as well as Dr. Farid Mahmud from the CANSOLVE-CKD SPOR Network. Here is a brief description of each study.
Dr. Booth and her team propose a clinical trial testing a novel electronic delivery of health care and related support services to people living with T1D in addition to usual care including frequent, brief virtual visits with their diabetes care team to share and discuss blood sugar patterns, diabetes self-management, coping strategies, personalized goals and action plans. This intervention will also have structured online educational courses, tools and supports. These virtual visits will use videoconferencing technology that can be securely accessed free of charge from any personal device (PC, tablet, smart phone),
Dr. Rhabasa-Lhoret and his team propose a study examining better strategies to reduce episodes of hypoglycemia. This includes an online educational strategy to help patients wearing medical devices to monitor blood sugar levels in real time to optimize functionality of these devices. This study has also developed a peer-to-peer discussion forum to offer social support and personal strategies to reducing hypoglycemia.
Dr. Farid and his team are examining the effects of a group of medications, called sodium glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) in teens with T1D. These medications have previous evidence of success in adults with T2D to improve diabetes control and prevent long-term kidney and heart issues due to high blood sugars.
All of these studies were co-developed with patients and directly address the concerns articulated by those living with T1D. Diabetes Action Canada is thrilled to be collaborating with each of these investigators. As research synergies and new collaborations emerge, Diabetes Action Canada is designing a digital health platform to support these research studies. In particular, the Innovations in Type-1 Diabetes Goal-Directed Program will be forming a Steering Committee to establish a framework for planning and implementing a T1D Registry to assist in implementation of these clinical trials. The core purpose of the T1D Registry is to facilitate timely and effective recruitment of subjects to clinical trials, while enhancing communication with individuals living with T1D on current clinical trials and how to participate.
