A diagnosis of diabetes often catches new patients off guard - for instance if they end up in the emergency room suffering from metabolic decompensation. Children are often affected by this. Their immune system destroys the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas early on in their lives, thus causing type 1 diabetes.
It could be diagnosed early through a screening and possibly even prevented by regulating the immune system. In this interview with MEDICA.de, Dr. Peter Achenbach talks about how "Fr1da" is intended to help children and their families in Bavaria before the first symptoms occur. The study's objective is to promote comprehensive screening for diabetes, the early diagnosis of the harmful autoimmune response and a chance to slow down the immune system.
Dr. Achenbach, the Helmholtz Zentrum München in Bavaria is conducting two studies on the early detection and intervention in type 1 diabetes under the name "Fr1da". What is the project about?
Dr. Peter Achenbach: This is a pilot project. Within the scope of the "Fr1da" early detection study, we want to examine 100,000 children in Bavaria to determine whether they are in the early stages of type 1 diabetes. We subsequently offer prevention and training courses for the patients and their families to explain the disease and its symptoms and inform them about the required treatment. In doing so, we avoid the serious, often life-threatening complications that frequently arise when clinical symptoms of diabetes manifest in small children: approximately 30 percent of them suffer from ketoacidosis, excessive blood acidity. One in 400 children dies from this. ...
Read the complete interview at MEDICA-tradefair.com!