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VIDEO: Diabetic bone disease poses multiple avenues for research
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ATLANTA — In this video exclusive, Clifford J. Rosen, MD, director of clinical and translational research and a senior scientist at the University of Maine Medical Center's Research Institute, describes what is currently known about diabetic bone disease and what directions for research appear promising.
Bone disease resulting from diabetes is multifactorial, Rosen said. In addition to the toxic effects on the skeleton of prolonged high glucose levels and excess lipids, the atherosclerosis present in patients with diabetes may lead to vascular changes that affect the skeleton, and neuropathic changes can also cause damage. “How these different components come together to produce diabetic bone disease is very difficult to reconcile,” Rosen said.
Researchers are now attempting to sort out cellular, molecular and biomechanical factors involved in diabetic bone disease. Rosen also predicts an increase in studies exploring the condition in patients who have undergone gastric bypass surgery.