Dual-Hormone Insulin-and-Pramlintide Artificial Pancreas for Type 1 Diabetes: A Systematic Review

The artificial pancreas (AP) is equipped with a glucose monitoring sensor, an insulin pump and an integrated mathematical algorithm that determines insulin infusion based on the glucose levels detected by the sensor. Research has shown that AP can help patients with type-1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM) to improve the control of their glucose levels, but the occurrence of postprandial hyperglycemia is still considerable. The addition of pramlintide (a synthetic derivative analog of amylin) in a dual-hormone AP could improve postprandial glycemic control. This systematic review aims to evaluate and synthesize the evidence on the safety, efficacy and cost-effectiveness of the dual insulin- and pramlintide-releasing AP. The electronic databases MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science and ClinicalTrials.gov were consulted up to 6 June 2021. We identified four small crossover studies (n = 59) and two ongoing crossover trials, all of them carried out by the same research group. The four studies observed more gastrointestinal adverse effects with the dual system. One study found that the dual system improved outcomes compared to insulin alone, with precise carbohydrate counting (CC) in both groups. Another study showed that a fully closed-loop system (without CC) was equivalent to an insulin-alone AP (with CC) on time in the target range but performed worse in hyperglycemia during the daytime. These preliminary results suggest that the control of postprandial hyperglycemia remains a challenge.

Automated summary

The artificial pancreas (AP) is an effective device for helping patients with type-1 Diabetes Mellitus (T1DM) control their glucose levels. The addition of pramlintide in a dual-hormone AP could improve postprandial glycemic control. However, current research shows that controlling postprandial hyperglycemia remains a challenge.