Tag: diabetes

How can a weight-loss drug fight sleep apnea?

On June 27, 2025

In muscular system, nervous system, respiratory system

Teachable moment in classrooms:

respiratory system chapter – anatomy of the upper airways
muscular system chapter – anatomy of the muscles of the tongue and pharynx
nervous system chapter – location of satiety center in the hypothalamus

The news item: Recently the following report appeared online:

FDA approves weight loss drug Zepbound for sleep apnea

Zepbound, Eli Lilly’s weight loss drug, can now be used to treat obstructive sleep apnea in adults with obesity, the FDA said.

The report states that 39 million adults with obesity in the USA might benefit from this drug treatment. Studies showed that Zepbound significantly reduced the obstruction events in patients. The article also provides a brief description of apnea events, and alternative treatment methods of sleep apnea.

So, Why Do I Care?? Sleep apnea, or more precisely, obstructive sleep apnea, is a sleep disorder that affects millions of adults in the US who suffer from obesity. Those people are not just losing sleep, but are at higher risk for several cardiovascular diseases, and for daytime sleepiness. While there are limitations (such as side effects) to the wide use of this drug treatment, it adds to the list of possible treatment options physicians can subscribe.

Plain English, Please!!! First, let’s talk about sleep apnea. Apnea is a brief closure of the airways where the closure stops air from getting into the lungs. The lower portion of our airways have solid cartilage framework (trachea, bronchi), so narrowing rarely occurs; it is always open, like a steel pipe. However, in the upper airways (mouth, soft palate) we have muscles that surround those airways, and the inappropriate relaxation of the muscles can lead to closure of the upper airway; imagine putting on a sock: it’s easy when we open it up with our fingers, but it’s harder to put our toes through it when the sock is collapsed on the floor. The loss of oxygen flow awakens the person, and repeated instances of apnea leads to poor quality sleep.

Second, let’s talk about throat muscles. Skeletal muscles in the throat (anatomically called pharynx) and in the soft palate (by specific names: the tensor palatini, levator palatini muscles), and in the tongue

How can infusion of Tzield slow the progression of type I diabetes?

By admin

On July 24, 2024

In endocrine system, lymphatic and immune system

Teachable moment in classrooms:

endocrine system chapter – role of insulin in lowering high blood sugar levels
endocrine system chapter – location of insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas
immune system chapter – role of T-lymphocytes in the immune system

The news item: Recently the following report appeared online:

FDA approves 1st drug to delay onset of Type 1 diabetes

For the first time, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved a treatment that can delay the onset of Type 1 diabetes.

The article states that the drug was approved to treat stage 2 type I diabetes in order to avoid progression to stage 3. The article states that type 1 diabetes is a chronic autoimmune condition where the pancreas doesn’t produce insulin. When diagnosed by the detection of autoimmune antibodies, patients develop insulin-dependence within 5 years. Tzield is administered as an infusion. The article also states that 64,000 people in the US are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes each year, and currently 1.6 million people are using insulin.

So, Why Do I Care?? Insufficient production in type 1 diabetics happens to many people, as we see from the statistics in the online report. Large number of current and future patients could benefit if a new treatment could delay the starting point of insulin dependence. Then their lifestyle could be preserved, and the need for injected insulin could be delayed, and the cost to society be reduced.

Plain English, Please!!! First, let’s talk about why type 1 diabetes develops. Our immune system is normally programmed to recognize and then destroy invaders such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, worms, and others. Attack on the body’s own cells is prevented by a set of molecular “hand brakes”. When you apply the hand brake on your car, the car is immobilized, and the same way the CD3 molecules on T-lymphocytes prevent the destruction of the body’s cells. In an autoimmune disorder, such as type I diabetes, the hand brakes are released, and the T-lymphocytes attack and destroy the body’s own cells. In type I diabetes the beta cells of the pancreas are attacked and destroyed. Because the beta cells are the only cells that make the hormone insulin, when they are destroyed, the insulin levels decrease, and lowering a high blood sugar level becomes difficult.

Second, let’s talk about the stages of type 1 diabetes. In stage 1 the immune system is beginning its attack on the beta cells of the pancreas, there are no symptoms yet, but a blood test can discover the signs of an

How can the injectable medication Ozempic get TikTok users excited about weight loss?

By admin

On August 17, 2022

In digestive system, endocrine system, nervous system

TeachableMedicalNews article 08182022

Teachable moment in classrooms:

endocrine system chapter – hormones deliver instructions through receptors
nervous system – brain chapter – location and function of hypothalamus in the diencephalon
digestive system chapter – cells of the small intestine make hormones that control appetite

The news item: Recently the following report appeared:

https://www.yahoo.com/now/ozempic-touted-tiktok-weight-loss-185703991.html

the article stated that Ozempic is a prescription medication for type II diabetes, that Ozempic makes the pancreas to make more insulin, and that the weight loss is caused through the suppression of the appetite.

So, Why Do I Care?? One reason for caring is that it is unusual to see a side effect of a prescription drug that is a desirable side effect. The other reason to be interested is that we see an example of the sensitivity of the brain to hormones made in the small intestine. It becomes even more interesting, because it looks that the fight against the obesity epidemic just gained a new tool. About 50% of the adults and 25% of children in the USA are obese. Lowering the prevalence of obesity by weight loss could lower the occurrence of heart attacks, strokes, and several cancers.

Plain English, Please!!! First, let’s talk about what is Ozempic. The protein hormone GLP-1 (glucagon like peptide) is the active ingredient in Ozempic. GLP is a natural product of the cells in the human