According to a new study, 67% of patients with Type 2 diabetes who underwent bariatric surgery achieved complete diabetes remission 1 year after the procedure. However, if patients were not on insulin and did not have reduced pancreatic function, as measured by the glucose disposition index (GDI), this figure increased to over 96%.

The study was presented at the 29th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS).

The researchers examined 139 patients with Type 2 diabetes who underwent a gastric bypass. The patients, aged between 48 to 57, required medication to manage their diabetes and had a body mass index (BMI) between 33 and 75 prior to surgery.

GDI shows how effectively the pancreas produces insulin, as well as how well the insulin regulates the metabolization of carbohydrates and fats. The researchers found that patients were not as likely to achieve remission, as GDI was 30% of normal.

According to the researchers, remission rates were not affected by patients initial weight prior to surgery or weight loss after 6 weeks or 1 year after surgery. Remission of type 2 diabetes is defined as reaching and sustaining normal levels of blood glucose.

Lead study author, Richard A. Perugini, M.D., a bariatric surgeon at University of Massachusetts (UM) Medical Center in Worcester, explained:

“The study shows beta cell function, the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin, and insulin dependence, not initial weight or subsequent weight loss, are the greatest predictors of potential diabetes remission after gastric bypass. The study further confirms Type 2 diabetes becomes more difficult to manage as it progresses.”

The researchers found that 36% of patients no longer required diabetic medications within two weeks of undergoing surgery. By six weeks, 46% of patients no longer needed medication, 57% at 6 months, and 67% after one year.

Furthermore, 96% of patients on medications other than insulin whose GDI was not lower than 30% of normal, achieved remission. The researchers also found that at 1 year after surgery, all study participants’ hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) decreased from an average of 6.9% to 6.1%. HbA1c is a measure of sugar levels in the blood.

Although weight loss is effective in managing Type 2 diabetes, gastric bypass also helps patients manage their diabetes through other mechanisms. One year after surgery, the team found that participants lost on average 59% of their excess weight and 15 BMI points.

Gastric bypass surgery is a type of weight-loss surgery that involves reducing the size of the stomach and allowing food to bypass a section of the small intestine. Earlier studies have demonstrated that gastric bypass surgery improves Type 2 diabetes before dramatic weight loss has even occurred.

Type 2 diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States and individuals with the disease, who are approximately 60 pounds overweight (BMI of 35+), should consider bariatric surgery, according to The American Diabetes Association. In the past three decades, the number of individuals in the United States with diabetes has risen to more than 20 million, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Written By Grace Rattue