Inhalation is an attractive alternative to injection, but significant issues will limit its use
Insulin is an excellent therapeutic agent with few significant side effects, apart from hypoglycaemia. However, it has one major disadvantage — it needs to be given by injection. Patients’ fears or reservations often mean doctors are reluctant to initiate insulin therapy, even when it is clearly indicated.
The full article is accessible to AMA members and paid subscribers. Login to read more or purchase a subscription now.
Please note: institutional and Research4Life access to the MJA is now provided through Wiley Online Library.
- 1. Kapitza C, Hompesch M, Scharling B, Heise T. Intrasubject variability of inhaled insulin in type 1 diabetes: a comparison with subcutaneous insulin. Diabetes Technol Ther 2004; 6: 466-472.
- 2. Devries JH. Mealtime inhaled insulin lowers fasting glucose: a look at possible explanations. Diabetologia 2005; 48: 2682-2683.
- 3. Ceglia L, Lau J, Pittas AG. Meta-analysis: efficacy and safety of inhaled insulin therapy in adults with diabetes mellitus. Ann Intern Med 2006; 145: 665-675.
- 4. Mastrandrea LD, Quattrin T. Clinical evaluation of inhaled insulin. Adv Drug Deliv Rev 2006; 58: 1061-1075.
- 5. Himmelmann A, Jendle J, Mellen A, et al. The impact of smoking on inhaled insulin. Diabetes Care 2003; 26: 677-682.
- 6. Henry RR, Mudaliar SR, Howland WC 3rd, et al. Inhaled insulin using the AERx Insulin Diabetes Management System in healthy and asthmatic subjects. Diabetes Care 2003; 26: 764-769.
- 7. McMahon GT, Arky RA. Inhaled insulin for diabetes mellitus. N Engl J Med 2007; 356: 497-502.
- 8. Hayes RP, Muchmore D, Schmitke J. Effect of inhaled insulin on patient-reported outcomes and treatment preference in patients with type 1 diabetes. Curr Med Res Opin 2007; 23: 435-442.
Online responses are no longer available. Please refer to our instructions for authors page for more information.
Aidan McElduff has performed clinical trials on inhaled insulin for Novo Nordisk, and has received support from Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk to attend meetings. Dennis Yue has performed clinical trials on inhaled insulin for Pfizer, and staff in his department have performed clinical trials for Novo Nordisk. He is also on the Global Advisory Panel of Pfizer for inhaled insulin, and has received support from Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Pfizer to attend meetings.