Clinical Corners: Diabetes

I. Physician / Healthcare Provider Resources

The FDA has approved important safety label changes for statins. The changes include removal of routine monitoring of liver enzymes from drug labels. Information about the potential for generally non-serious and reversible cognitive side effects and reports of increased blood sugar and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels has been added to the statin labels.  Click here for full details.

American Diabetes Association Clinical Practice Recommendations 2007.  Diabetes Care 2007; 30(1):S1-103.

American Medical Directors Association.  Diabetes Management in the Long Term Care Setting .  Clinical Practice Guidelines. Columbia, MD:  American Medical Directors Association, 2007.

Nathan DM, Holman RR, Buse JB, et al.  Management of hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes: A consensus algorithm for the initiation & adjustment of therapy.  Diabetes Care 2006; 29:1963-72.

Products & Publications

Diabetes Management in the Long Term Care Setting (AMDA Clinical Practice Guideline revised 2010)

Tool Kit for Implementation of the Clinical Practice Guideline on Diabetes

Clinical Practice Guideline News: Diabetes

Diabetes Care Flow Sheet – Utilize the flow sheet to track a variety of data points and lifestyle choices of your residents with diabetes. Areas of evaluation are based on guidelines from the American Diabetes Association and the American Associations of Clinical Endocrinologists.

Education:

Community MD Article of Early Diagnosis – This article focuses on reducing the complications of diabetes through early diagnosis.  It also goes over the criteria for screening for diabetes and pre-diabetes.

Professional association web resources:

American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists- This website contains resources for clinical endocrinologists such as a links to their peer reviewed journal, clinical practice guidelines, and position statements

American Association of Diabetes Educators*- This website contains resources for diabetes educators such as resources for patient education, guide to resources, and measuring outcomes of diabetes education. 

American Diabetes Association*- This website is for patients and health professionals.  There is also diabetes information in Spanish available.  Resources cover topics on understanding the disease and type 1 and type 2 diabetes, living with diabetes (nutrition and lifestyle), community programs, journals and toolkits for healthcare professionals, etc.

Government sponsored web resources:

National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse* - This website is a service of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (government agency).  Site includes a diabetes dictionary, information on clinical trials, treatments, the National Diabetes Education Program, complications and statistics.  Information on site also available in Spanish.

Miscellaneous Diabetes Web Resources

American Council for Fitness & Nutrition – A resource and advocate for long-term, sustainable solutions to the nation’s obesity epidemic.

Joslin Diabetes Center - Comprehensive diabetes site from one of the largest diabetes care facilities in the nation.

New York Online Access to Health - Comprehensive compilation of diabetes resources.

Articles

Status of Diabetes Management in the Nursing Home Setting in 2008: A Retrospective Chart Review and Epidemiology Study of Diabetic Nursing Home Residents and Nursing Home Initiatives in Diabetes Management (Feldman SM, Rosen R, DeStasio J., Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, June 2009)

The Prevalence and Persistence of Sliding Scale Insulin Use Among Newly Admitted Elderly Nursing Home Residents With Diabetes Mellitus (Pandya N, Thompson S, Sambamoorthi U.,  Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, September 2008)

Caution Is Urged in Elderly Diabetes Care (Boschert S., Caring for the Ages August 2008) 

Study of Intensive Glucose Control Is Halted (Johnson K., Caring for the Ages, March 2008)

Optimizing Insulin Use in Type 2 Diabetes: Role of Basal and Prandial Insulin in Long-Term Care Facilities (Haas L., Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, October 2007)

Update on Diabetes in the Elderly and the Application of Current Therapeutics (Mazza A., Morley J., Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, October 2007)

The Application of Evidence-Based Principles of Care in Older Persons (Issue 3): Management of Diabetes Mellitus (Zarowitz B, Tangalos E, Hollenack K, O’Shea T., Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, May 2006)

II. Patient Resources

Patient Web Resources

American Heart Association "The Heart of Diabetes" Campaign- Learn more about diabetes and how it can increase your risk of heart attack and stroke.

Diabetes Life- This website is geared toward patients and their caregivers.  It has a very wide range of information on medication, diagnosis, treatment, nutrition / lifestyle, and getting support.  It is mainly geared towards education and helping diabetics and their loved ones understand and cope with Diabetes. 

Diabetes Mall* - Patient oriented shopping website for various diabetic care products as well as information about diabetes control, insulin and oral medication, improving control, various diabetic tools such as a BMI calculator, carbohydrate and calorie calculator, TDD estimator, tools to set up personal correction factor scale, and Spanish books.  There is a section on books for health professionals.