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New MRI Technique Can Detect Diabetes
MonkeyBoy writes "Researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center and Massachusetts General Hospital have unveiled a new magnetic nanoparticle based magnetic resonance imaging technique that can detect diabetes even before clinical symptoms. In mice they were able to take non-invasive images of pancreatic inflammation and its reversal for type 1 diabetes. Full article is available as a PDF from Pubmedcentral. Will we see rapid translation of these pre-clinical observations to prediction and/or stratification of type 1 diabetes and treatment of individuals with the disease? This would provide a crucially needed early predictor of response to therapy. As an added bonus it looks like the analysis was done on a Linux box too."
Just reading the summary, it says the box might run on Linux?
This is a good thing, now if only the pharmaceutical companies would make alot of their stuff open to the public, maybe we'd all not suffer nearly as badly due to our wallets not being fat enough.
Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
This is an interesting application of magneto-immunoassay - using the change in magnetic properties to determine if there has been a reaction.
I have heard from several people that have had an MRI that (a) it is almost impossible to get scheduled in any reasonable timeframe for one and (b) they are 'incredibly expensive'.
:)
For something like diabetes that can be diagnosed in other ways, I don't see a normal doctor or health insurance company prescribing an MRI. Health care is one of the areas where capitalism is really the wrong motivation (because our long term health is not their concern - just short term costs).
I guess I'm just cynical, but I see some of these great advances being almost useless to the majority of people because they simply can't afford it or don't even have healthcare.
I keep hoping for things to change though
Hmm. It does occur to me that post could be seen as flamebait. Allow me to elaborate.
My wife got pregnant and got what apparently is a common problem: diabetes. She controlled it using exercise and diet. Then, after she gave birth the diabetes does what it does when it's pregnancy diabetes: it went away.
Then, about a year later, I changed jobs and decided I wanted to get insurance for her independent of the job, because their insurance was expensive. We answered all the questions on their questionnaire, including the requisite "diabetes" question. We then filled out in the "explanation for 'yes' answers" section a note about how the diabetes was minor and temporary.
They categorically denied to insure her in any way, shape, or form. No "You are qualified for our high-risk" plan or anything, just: "You are uninsurable by us (go to hell)."
So actually we kind of live in the dystopia I described. When I read this story, I wonder to myself "Could this tendency toward diabetes that she got have been detected, and if so, would she have been preemptively cured, or preemptively disallowed from being insured?"
Think about it.
fifth sigma, inc.
As a doctor, I had a few observations about this
... how often would
stusdy. These researchers demonstrated that an
MRI can find evidence of diabetes in mice before
the development of clinical symptoms. How does
this relate to people?
1. Practical: Type I diabetes typically develops in
children, who usually must be sedated and
observed for an MRI. This could double the cost
of the MRI (typically $1-2k in US). Also, we
don't know how long these findings are present
before diabetes develops
this need to be done?
2. The Incidence of type I diabetes is about
0.4% among people without relatives with
type I. First degree relatives have a 5-30%
risk... Certain genes predispose to type I
diabetes.... maybe this could be used in certain
people.
3. Since there is no such early diagnosis, we
don't really know who we might treat this
pre-type I state. Certainly we could make a
few reasonable guesses, but any benefit is
still in doubt until there are human trials.
I think this will definitely be more handy when
tricorders are perfected!
Building a healthy future; Connecting communities
I had an MRI a few years ago, and I almost had something like this happen. I was wearing a thin stainless steel neclace with a small steel pendant, which I had forgotten to take off. Fortunately, the technician saw it before I went in the tube. When I handed it to her, it was hanging at a 45 degree angle even though it was about three feet from the foot of the tube. I wonder what would have happened if I had gone into the tube wearing it.
If you can read this sig, you're too close.
Gestational diabetes is absolutely a risk for later progression to type II diabetes mellitus. Before anyone gets compltely outraged, this is a known fact, and that's why the insurance company flatly refused her.
People want to believe that if they are doing all the right things, such as styaing slim, getting a reasonable amoutn of exercise, not smoking, and eating right, they shouldn't be turned down for insurance. Well, the fact is that the insurance company only wants completely healthy folks. Depending on your state laws, group policies may still have "riders". For instance, this gentleman's wife may have gotten group coverage, but no coverage for diabetes-related illness for one year.
This dystopian (great word, btw) world leads to a lack of health insurance coverage for many small business owners, at least until they can afford to pay for group coverage for their employees (just so they can get insurance for themselves).
More than once, I have wished for a system such as the UK, where health care is available simply for being British. I doubt it would be all fish and chips, but as a doc I see the broad variety of people without insurance, and the havoc it causes them.
Building a healthy future; Connecting communities
Yes.
I love these questions! They do the same thing on NPR. "Mr. So-and-So, do you think that this Gaza strip pullout will mean that peace negotiations can continue, thereby creating a harmonious world balance where children hold hands and laugh gaily, frolicing through streets lined with happy merchants selling kumquats at a mere 15 cents for a dozen? Yes or no?"
If aspiration is a virtue, achievement cannot be a vice.
It may not be worth spotting early if it turns out to be curable after the fact, which it might ultimately be. Though I would imagine that if swelling of the pancreas can be spotted on an MRI, so can a lot of other things they haven't yet thought to look for. This might end up being a broad, multi-purpose diagnostic that is cost-justified because it eliminates so many other procedures.
:/
I can see it going either way.
Mal-2
How is the Riemann zeta function like Trump rallies? Both have an endless number of trivial zeros.
Hmm... I was in Russia last September, and did not have ANY problems to book an MRI exam. If I remember correctly, cost was about $100 USD. So, why it should be 10 times more in US ?
For the most part you probably would have been ok. The chain would have ruined the data, but the MR tech would have caught that during setup. At worst the metal could heat up and burn you (no joke), though it doesn't happen most times.
Speaking of MRIs gone wild, so many women who come in for (research) scans make some joke about how the magnet might be so strong it'll rip their bras off.
Underwired bra - the pull is pretty strong. It's a surprise if you're not expecting it (judging by the usual expression). Hair ties and belt buckles to.
- Most diabetics are "type 2", which usually dont have anything to do with pancreatic inflamation.
- Even for "type 1's" or peole at risk of type 1, what are they supposed to do, get a MRI every day, at $800 per scan?
- Even so, even if an inflammation is found, what can be done? Be on immuno-surpressors for a long long time?
This sounds like a technique more usueful for ivory-tower research on the progression of inflamation, not terribly useful to the end sufferer.I'm glad it runs Linux because everyone knows that MRIs cost so much and are so complicated only because they run Windows. I bet now that they are running Linux, a MRI will only cost about $20 and any 10th grader will be able to operate it.
Another added benefit will be its superior security. I'd hate all those MRI machines connected straight to the internet to be vulnerable to hacking. Someone could take control and give a patient a superdose and inadvertantly give them superpowers!
Ninjas don't carry tic tacs