Novo Nordisk unveils 2 insulin

New Delhi: Novo Nordisk India (www.novonordisk.com), the market leader in diabetes care and the insulin major, today launched two insulin analogues — NovoMix 30 and NovoRapid. NovoMix 30 is premixed analogue and NovoRapid is rapid-acting analogue. NovoMix 30 and NovoRapid are available in the world's most preferred insulin delivery device — FlexPen.

What are insulin analogues?
Insulin analogues are one of the major advances in insulin therapy in recent times. They are genetically engineered products in which human insulin molecules are modified so as to enable safer and simpler insulin regimens. NovoMix 30 and NovoRapid are the result of a 20-year research programme from Novo Nordisk. The company believes with the launch of NovoMix 30 and NovoRapid more benefit of the insulin therapy can be given to more patients, hopefully reducing the terrible complications associated with diabetes.

Why NovoMix 30 and NovoRapid better than currently available insulin?
Diabetes is a chronic progressive disease associated with the following terrible complications:

• People with diabetes are likely to be affected:
  
  o Two-to-five times more likely to suffer strokes than non-diabetics
  o 25 times more likely to go blind than non-diabetics
  o 17 times more likely to suffer from kidney failure
  o 30 times more likely to undergo limb amputation due to diabetic foot
  o Four times at greater risk of heart attacks than non-diabetics
  
  
• Large trials (UKPDS, DCCT) have proven that the above complications can be avoided, delayed or progress reduced by good metabolic control and good blood sugar control
  
• As diabetes is a progressive disease with insulin secreting capacity of pancreas reducing over time, the treatment changes over time. In practice it means that most type diabetics will need insulin for good control
  
• Unfortunately patients do not prefer to use insulin
  
  o DIPPAP study done across India revealed that
  
  
  • 53 per cent fear hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)
    
  • 35 per cent find compliance to therapy difficult
    
  • 34 per cent have fear of injection

Now with the availability of NovoMix 30 and NovoRapid the above problems will be reduced. As compared to conventional insulin the risk of hypoglycemia is reduced by 72 per cent:

• Unlike conventional insulin, NovoMix 30 and NovoRapid can be injected just before or after the meal making compliance easy. Traditional insulin needed to be taken 30 minutes before meals. Unfortunately if the meals got delayed this would lead to hypoglycemia.
  
• With FlexPen the fear of prick is very much reduced
  
  • 82 per cent of the doctors in study preferred FlexPen as the insulin delivery device
    
  • One of the best devices in the world for delivering insulin
    
• With currently available insulin,
  
  • The regimens were tough; you had to take insulin 30 minutes before meals. In real life meals get delayed or even omitted (by children), this would lead to the risk of hypoglycemia. As there was a delay in absorption, mismatch between insulin profile and requirement was high, which again increased the risk of hypoglycemia
    
  • Now with NovoMix 30 and NovoRapid, this risk is very much reduced

Launching NovoMix30 and NovoRapid, Sanjeev Shishoo, managing director, Novo Nordisk India, says: "Novo Nordisk India is committed to providing the best and the most advanced therapy for people with diabetes in India. And the introduction of NovoMix30 and NovoRapid is another step in helping people with diabetes better manage their glucose levels and facilitate a better lifestyle. Now more patients can benefit from safer insulin regimens."

Novo Nordisk India has always been the pioneer, which has introduced in India the best and the most advanced diabetes care therapies. Having been the first company to bring in porcine, human insulin and the pen delivery devices, Novo Nordisk India now introduces "the most advanced" insulin therapy available for people with diabetes in India.

Says Shishoo: "The three chief advantages of insulin analogues NovoMix30 and NovoRapid are, it offers greater flexibility, higher efficacy and enhanced safety in the insulin regime."

With NovoMix30 and NovoRapid the physician and the patient can now aim for lower blood glucose control targets with the "fear/risk of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar)" being overcome. Currently, hypoglycemia, other than convenience and fear of injection, is one of the major limiting factors a major barrier for insulin initiation.

Also better control of post-meal blood glucose achieved using insulin analogues helps limit the development and progression of heart disease, a major cause of death in persons with diabetes.