PURPOSE: Premixed insulin is effective to improve glycemic control; however, clinicians may be less likely to know which premixed insulin is appropriate for which patients. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of twice-daily injections of premixed insulin lispro on glycemic control in type 2 diabetic patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty type 2 diabetic patients, who had been treated with twice-daily injections of human protamine mixture 30/70 insulin for at least 12 months, were divided into two groups; one group whose blood glucose 2 hours after breakfast was greater than 200 mg/dL, was switched to lispro mix50, and the other group whose blood glucose 2 hours after breakfast < 200 was switched to lispro mix25. RESULTS: Glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) significantly improved in the Mix50 group from 8.3% to 7.5% (at 12 weeks; p < 0.05), and to 7.5% (at 24 weeks; p < 0.05). On the other hand, HbA1c levels in the Mix25 group were slightly decreased from 8.1% to 7.7% at 12 weeks (p < 0.05), and to 7.9% at 24 weeks (not significant). Both postprandial plasma glucose and fasting plasma glucose levels were significantly improved in the Mix50 group, but not in the Mix25 group. Overall, 95% of subjects preferred premixed lispro insulin from human insulin in the viewpoint of the timing of insulin injection by questionnaire analysis. CONCLUSION: Switching from human protamine mixture 30/70 insulin to lispro mix50 twice-daily injection therapy in patients with high postprandial plasma glucose could improve their glycemic control and quality of life.
Aged ; Blood Glucose/*analysis ; Body Mass Index ; Body Weight ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/*drug therapy ; Female ; Hemoglobin A, Glycosylated/metabolism ; Humans ; Insulin/administration & dosage/*analogs & derivatives ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Postprandial Period ; Protamines/administration & dosage ; Treatment Outcome

Objective: To examine the inter- and intra-rater reliability of the pull test in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD) using the extracted pull force. Methods: In this inter- and intra-rater reliability study, two raters performed a pull test on 30 patients with PD. The pull force was quantified using inertial sensors attached to the rater’s right hand and the patient’s lower trunk. In this study, the pull force was calculated as an extracted three-dimensional vector quantity, the resultant acceleration, and was expressed in m/s2. Inter- and intra-rater reliabilities were analyzed using the interclass correlation coefficient (ICC) for the pull force and Cohen’s weighted kappa (κw) for the pull test score. Furthermore, Bland–Altman analysis was used to investigate systematic errors. Results: The inter- and intra-rater reliability of the pull force was very poor (ICC = 0.033–0.214). Bland–Altman analysis revealed no systematic errors in the pull forces between the two test points. Conversely, κw for the pull test scores ranged from 0.763 to 0.920, indicating substantial to almost perfect agreement. Conclusion The pull test score was reliable despite variations in the quantified pull force for inter- and intra-rater reliability. Our findings suggest that the pull test is a robust tool for evaluating postural instability in patients with PD and that the pull force probably does not affect scoring performance.