Diabetes Health in The News: New Study Uses Cognitive Test to Determine if Patients Can Successfully Inject Insulin

Healthcare experts have long had concerns about elderly diabetic patients, especially those who show signs of dementia, understanding how to successfully inject themselves with insulin. A new method of testing cognitive functions, however, has proven to be a strong indicator for those who can successfully inject insulin and those who will need assistance.

Researchers at Japan’s Yokohama City University used a cognitive test involving animals for a group of 57 patients. These elderly individuals had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and had just begun using insulin. Each was asked to list as many animals as possible within a minute. Patients who named at least 11 later showed success in injecting their medication.

 

These findings were published in the Journal of Diabetes Investigation on August 28, 2017.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *