Diabetes mellitus: A high-risk condition

Diabetes is associated with the inability of the pancreas to produce insulin (a glucose-regulating hormone), and an increased cell resistance to this hormone. Its complications are severe, including blindness, end-stage kidney failure, heart attack, leg ulcers, etc. In Greece, 3,000 patients undergo diabetes-induced amputation annually. It is estimated that in our country the number of diabetics has quadrupled over the last 30 years, and today diabetes cases reach one million.

Prevention of the disease requires lifestyle changes –a desired, yet hardly feasible objective. Medication aims at sustainable normal glucose levels, but it does not avert unfavorable developments.

Surgical treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus

Heavy implications and rapid prevalence of type 2 diabetes mellitus have driven the international medical community to develop surgical procedures for the permanent treatment of the disease. The USA, a country where diabetes is listed as the 3rd leading cause of death, was the first to apply these procedures. Major and authoritative diabetes associations in Europe and the USA, such as the American Diabetes Association, now include surgical procedures among the treatment choices for diabetics.

The goal of the surgical procedures is to restore glucose levels to normalcy without the need of medication. The procedures are based on the fact that when food moves more rapidly from the stomach to the end section of the small intestine (ileum), the gastro-intestinal system secretes hormones which normalize pancreatic function and reduce insulin resistance. All procedures are performed laparoscopically, i.e. with minimal incisions.
Surgical interventions for the treatment of diabetes

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