2017 Central Clinical School Public Lecture: Changing the way we treat diabetes and its complications

Since the discovery of insulin over 90 years ago and a number of oral tablets after the second world war there was very little change in the treatment of type 2 diabetes till the last decade. In the last 10 years there have been dramatic improvements in the way we treat type 2 diabetes also known as maturity onset diabetes, a condition that has become arguably the largest worldwide epidemic as the world has industrialised with increasing obesity and reduced exercise.

Fortunately these new treatments have less side effects and recent trials over the last 18 months suggest that these new drugs may also reduce some of the most important complications associated with diabetes including heart and kidney disease. This lecture will review the new ways that we are managing diabetes and emphasise the potential benefits that these new treatment strategies could yield in terms of reduced mortality and a decrease in the major burden of diabetes and its complications.