Essay Example on Verapamil Effective in Treating Type 1 Diabetes

Human clinical trials indicate have found out that Verapamil, a common blood pressure medication, is a safe and effective therapy for type 1 diabetes. This is the first drug that has shown to have an effect on the course of type 1 diabetes which is caused by the destruction of the body by its own pancreatic cells (Sheth, 2018). Verapamil drug reduces blood pressure. It is used as a calcium channel blocker in the treatment of high blood pressure and irregular heartbeat.

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Type 1 diabetes refers to a condition where a patient's immune system attacks the body's beta cells in the pancreas which produce insulin that regulates and maintains the body's optimal sugar levels. Destruction of beta cells would mean poor to no control of blood sugar levels. This would cause the victim to depend on external insulin.

The researchers began by experimenting with verapamil, which is known to reduce the levels of TXNIP in heart cells. More studies on animals indicated that verapamil reduced the levels of TXNIP and also slowed down the rates of death of beta cells. Among its major roles included restricting the production of protein thioredoxin which led to a reduction in the death of beta cells. From the animal study, verapamil was able to fully rescue the lab mice from diabetes, a scenario that would, however, be unlikely for humans. This is because the regenerative capability of mice is much greater than that of humans ("Healthline," 2019).

A new study that involved human subjects found that giving the victims who had recently developed type 1 diabetes a daily dose of verapamil enhanced their beta-cell functioning ability, reduced the need for insulin therapy and was linked to reduced incidences of hypoglycemia (extremely low blood sugar levels). According to the researchers, the patients who were on verapamil retained most of their own insulin production and needed less of their daily insulin with time.

Verapamil can be used together with treatment to prevent the immune response against beta cells ("Healthline," 2018). According to the study, addition of a daily ounce would be a safe and effective approach in promoting endogenous beta cell function and reducing the hypoglycemic episodes and insulin requirements in individuals with a recent onset of type 1 diabetes. While verapamil is not yet an end-all cure for type 1 diabetes, the results from the study are getting us closer to disease-altering therapies that can enable the victims of type 1 diabetes to have more control over the disease while maintaining part of their own body's insulin production.

The findings of the above researches would result in a significant impact on the victims of type 1 diabetes. First of all, patients lose a lot of beta cells and at a rapid rate during the first year, thereby steering the problem at a high rate. Therefore, administration of verapamil at an earlier stage of the disease will help stop the attrition and this would be a big gain for the patient. Early administration of verapamil to victims of type 1 diabetes would also help to protect their beta cells from destruction by the immune system and therefore prevent them from being totally insulin deficient, which is usually the end point of type 1 victims.

Verapamil would also ease people with diabetes more gently in their diagnosis as opposed to fighting with it at its critical stage, which is usually the norm. Treatment using verapamil is well-tested, safe and inexpensive. This provides an added advantage to the victims of the disease. The need for insulin and the chances of developing hypoglycemic episodes in the case of adults who are recently diagnosed with diabetes will be reduced. The findings indicate that research progress with regards to diabetes type 1 is on the right track with entrances to a new phase of discovery that relates to the disease.

Therefore, with diabetes affecting more than 30 million people in America alone, the breakthrough would result in approaches that would help to improve the living standards of those affected by the disease (Cone, 2018). The findings indicate the first effective, non-immunosuppressive and satisfactory approach that has been discovered to target the loss of beta cell function in diabetes type 1.

The treatment option is not yet fully available to the public, but there are plans to make it easily accessible to most of the victims in the near future. However, there are concerns that people should be aware of the "Four T" symptoms of diabetes type 1, i.e., Toilet (due to frequent urination), Tiredness, Thirst, and Thinness (due to weight loss). Proper analysis of these concepts would help to detect diabetes at an early stage and facilitate easier and earlier administration of the drug to obtain maximum benefits. Easy and affordable screening opportunities should be available for patients who have not yet had much beta-cell destruction for a best-case scenario of the outcome. However, further research should be conducted to identify the results of long-term treatment of verapamil on children and adults with years of type 1 diabetes.

References

Cone, A. (2018). Blood pressure medication effectively used to treat type 1 diabetes. UPI. Retrieved from https://www.upi.com/Health_News/2018/07/10/Blood-pressure-medication-effectively-used-to-treat-type-1-diabetes/8421531224672/

"Healthline", (2019). Diabetes Treatment With Blood Pressure Drug. Healthline. Retrieved from https://www.healthline.com/health-news/blood-pressure-drug-help-diabetes-treatment#1

Sheth, S. (2018). Blood Pressure Medication Found Effective as Type 1 Diabetes Therapy. dLife. Retrieved from https://dlife.com/blood-pressure-medication-found-effective-as-type-1-diabetes-therapy/