Diabetics with kidney disease may be saved from needing dialysis in future, thanks to ground-breaking Otago University research.
A patient on dialysis (file photo). Photo: AFP
Associate Professor Suetonia Palmer's study, published in the prestigous medical journal The Lancet, uses a new technique which mines data from thousands of patients across hundreds of clinical trials and analyses them.
It is the first of its kind to compare all drug options, and combinations of commonly used drugs, against each other.
She said the study shows certain combinations of drugs are much better than others, while some are potentially harmful.
Associate Professor Palmer, who works as a kidney specialist, hoped the study would give doctors much more confidence in making clinical decisions, and said she knew first-hand how confusing the wide range of treatment options could be for patients and doctors.
It is hoped that the study will help good clinical decision-making.
