Originally published August 19 2005
Insulin spares intensive care patients from organ failure and death (press release)
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
It was previously shown, in a large, randomized, controlled trial that controlling blood glucose with insulin reduces the risk of organ failure and death of patients in intensive care. But the underlying mechanisms explaining these clinical benefits remained incompletely understood.
In a new study appearing on August 1 in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, the same group, Greet Van den Berghe and colleagues from Katholieke Universitiet Leuven, show that there is disturbed microcirculation in these patients that is due to endothelial dysfunction which causes inadequate oxygen supply to the cellular systems. The endothelium controls vascular flow and trafficking of important biological molecules. The endothelium of patients with prolonged critical illness is protected by strict blood glucose control with insulin and this may play a major role in the prevention of organ failure and death with this treatment.
This data may open perspectives for novel treatments and for progress in intensive care medicine. In an accompanying commentary, Dandona, et al write, "the results suggest a new paradigm in which glucose and insulin are related not only through their metabolic actions but also through their opposite effects on inflammatory mechanisms."
Insulin spares intensive care patients from organ failure and death (press release)
All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing LLC takes sole responsibility for all content. Truth Publishing sells no hard products and earns no money from the recommendation of products. NaturalNews.com is presented for educational and commentary purposes only and should not be construed as professional advice from any licensed practitioner. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. For the full terms of usage of this material, visit www.NaturalNews.com/terms.shtml