World

Anti-wrinkle cure may help diabetics

Calls for more trials to see if toxin can help bigger group

October 27, 2004 Edition 1

Pat Hagan

London - Botox injections could be the

latest weapon in the battle against diabetes, according to new research.

The poisonous toxin - most commonly associated with banishing wrinkles - has been found to ease a

gut condition endured by thousands of diabetics.

The condition, called gastroparesis, is thought to affect up to 50% of all those with type one diabetes.

This is the form of the disease that usually develops in children or young adults and often requires daily insulin jabs to keep the symptoms at bay.

US researchers who experimented with botox injections on a small group of diabetes sufferers claim it produced a dramatic improvement in symptoms.

They are now calling for larger trials to see if the positive findings can be repeated in a much bigger group of patients.

Botox has become hugely popular with both women and men seeking to preserve their youth.

But it also has a wide range of conventional clinical uses. Studies show it can ease symptoms in Parkinson's disease and stroke by reducing the involuntary muscle spasms that can affect movement. It has also been found to be effective in the treatment of chronic neck pain. Now the evidence suggests even diabetics could benefit from botox.

Thousands of people in Britain with diabetes are at risk of gastroparesis, a disorder in which the stomach takes too long to empty its contents.

Current treatments vary from taking more insulin to control blood sugar levels to drugs that tackle the gastroparesis itself.

In severe cases, surgery is needed to insert a feeding tube directly into the small intestine and a special nutrient-rich liquid fed through it.

But the latest breakthrough with botox suggests it could prove to be a more effective therapy.

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore in the United States, decided to investigate botox because of its ability to paralyse muscle. Their theory was that if they injected the toxin into the pylorus - a muscle that forms a tiny opening between the stomach and the duodenum - it might relieve the spasms causing the blockage.

Seven people with the condition volunteered to take part in the experiment. They had botox injected and were then monitored for three months.

The results, published in the journal Diabetes Care, showed there were no dangerous side effects and symptoms improved significantly. Six of the seven gained weight during the trial and in four of them, the time it took food to pass through their systems also improved.

But Phil Casey, a care adviser with Diabetes UK, said: "This study on botox is a very small one. Far more work needs to be done to establish if it could offer real benefits." - Daily Mail