Islet transplantation in type 1 diabetic patients.
Islet transplantation has been shown to improve overall glucose homeostasis and retard the progression of complications in type I diabetic patients. Also the percentage of recipients achieving complete insulin independence has progressively increased over recent years. An unsolved problem is whether the short-term graft function is secondary to progressive islet exhaustion or to recurrent autoimmunity despite the immunosuppressive therapy. The indications for this procedure remain limited to selected type I diabetic patients. The risks of the immunosuppressive therapy are only proposed to type I diabetic recipients with uncontrolled disease, despite all efforts of the diabetologist and the patient (brittle diabetes), or with a poor quality of life due to unawareness hypoglycemia or severe chronic and progressive complications.
Bertuzzi
F
F
Medical Surgical Department, Medicine Department, S Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy. bertuzzi.federico@hsr.it
Secchi
A
A
Di Carlo
V
V
D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000601:surgery*; D006085:Graft Survival; D006801:Humans; D016381:Islets of Langerhans Transplantation / Q000502:physiology; D011788:Quality of Life; D012008:Recurrence