Pharmacists, Primary Care Clinicians, Registered Nurses
Diabetes, Geriatric Medicine, T2DM
1. | Summarize the current understanding of the pathophysiology of T2DM especially as it relates to patients with longer durations of diabetes | 2. | Manage aging patients with diabetes effectively using therapies that address the underlying pathophysiological disturbances while minimizing adverse events |
3. | Prescribe optimal and convenient antidiabetic therapies that minimize the cardiovascular risk in their aging patients | 4. | Provide accurate and appropriate care and counsel for patients and their families as part of the treatment team |
1. | Summarize the current understanding of the pathophysiology of T2DM especially as it relates to patients with longer durations of diabetes |
2. | Manage aging patients with diabetes effectively using therapies that address the underlying pathophysiological disturbances while minimizing adverse events |
3. | Prescribe optimal and convenient antidiabetic therapies that minimize the cardiovascular risk in their aging patients |
4. | Provide accurate and appropriate care and counsel for patients and their families as part of the treatment team |
Estimated time to complete the activity: 1 hour
Agenda
Welcome and Overview
Case Presentation – Understanding T2DM Pathophysiology in the Aging: Duration of Disease
Case Presentation – Choosing Appropriate Therapy for Managing A1C in Aging Patients: Efficacy, Adverse Events, and Convenience
Case Presentation – Cardiovascular Risks in Aging Patients with Diabetes: Optimal Strategies to Minimize Risk
Question and Answer Session
Program Overview
Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is an epidemic in the US and around the world. The 2011 Centers for Disease Control (CDC) report shows that 26.9% of individuals 65 years of age or older have diabetes. Additionally, 50% of adults 65 years of age or older were reported to have prediabetes, and in 2010, 390,000 new cases of diabetes were reported in this age group. Recent data show that the risk of coronary death and death from vascular causes in patients with diabetes was 2.31- and 2.32-fold higher than those without diabetes. Diabetes has been shown to decrease life expectancy by 6 years in individuals who are 50 years of age. Despite the availability of a wide variety of pharmaceuticals, T2DM in the aging remains a difficult condition to treat. A recent CDC analysis showed that between 2003 and 2006, ~32% of patients who were ≥65 years of age had an A1C level ≥7.0; ~11% had an A1C level ≥8%; and 4.1% had an A1C >9%. The complex nature of T2DM pathology and rapid emergence of new data, especially with respect to incretin-based therapies, makes it difficult for clinicians to stay abreast of the latest developments. Clearly, continuing education activities are needed to highlight the novel strategies that allow clinicians to not just control their aging patients’ glycemic profiles but also help minimize cardiovascular risks. Therefore, this activity will begin with an overview of the prevalence and morbidity associated with T2DM in aging patients and barriers such as fear of weight gain, fear of hypoglycemia, and ease and convenience of use of therapies that frequently hinder optimal management. Next, using the case of an aging patient, the faculty will review the current understanding of the pathophysiology of T2DM and highlight the mechanism of action of incretin-based therapies in this context. They will then highlight the role of a multifaceted approach for better glycemic control and for minimized cardiovascular risks consistent with guideline recommendations. Furthermore, they will discuss recent clinical trial data demonstrating the ease and convenience of use, safety and efficacy profiles of short- and long-acting incretin-based therapies in managing T2DM in aging patients. Finally, the expert faculty will drive home the key clinical takeaways and guideline recommendations that physicians can implement immediately into their clinical practices in order to improve care for their patients with T2DM.
Target Audience
This activity has been designed to meet the educational needs of primary care clinicians, registered nurses, pharmacists, and other healthcare professionals involved in the care of patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.
Physician Continuing Medical Education
Accreditation Statement
This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education through the joint sponsorship of Postgraduate Institute for Medicine and ACCELMED. The Postgraduate Institute for Medicine is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
Credit Designation
The Postgraduate Institute for Medicine designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Pharmacist Continuing Education
Accreditation Statement
Supported Browsers: Internet Explorer 8.0+ for Windows 2000, 2003, Vista, XP, Windows 7, Windows 8 Google Chrome 18.0+ for Windows, Mac OS, or Linux Mozilla Firefox 13.0+ for Windows, Mac OS, or Linux Safari 4.0+ for Mac OSX 10.5 and above | Supported Phones & Tablets: Android 4.0.3 and above iPhone/iPad with iOS 6.1 or above |