Diabetic Blindness!
Posted in Health news on 09/29/2009 12:08 am by khushboo.shahWe all know that India is termed the World Diabetes Capital and if estimates are true by 2030 there will be 79.4 million Indians suffering from diabetes. I read a very interesting article in DNA Money, stating that though all the major pharmaceutical companies have joined the bandwagon for bringing out novel diabetic drugs, there is barely one company -Eli Lilly, a US drug major who is conducting clinical trials for a drug that aims at targeting diabetec blindness or as they call it in medical jargon – diabetic retinopathy. No oral medication is available at present for this illness; and the current treatments: laser treatment, avastin injection and surgery are limited, have side effects and burn a hole in the pocket.
At a time when 20% of the Indian diabetics could lose vision and the risk for diabetics contracting blindness is 25% more than a non-diabetics, the drug ‘ruboxistaurin’ by Eli Lilly may be a major blessing!