North Wales Academic Unit Diabetes Research Group

1
North Wales Academic UnitDiabetes Research Group

• John N Harvey MD FRCP
• CRC Cymru
• Bodelwyddan Castle
• 17 September 2009

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History

• Academic Unit of Psychiatry
• 1993 Wrexham Academic Unit
• Diabetes
• - Primary Care

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Developments (1)

• 1993 Research laboratory - Kallikrein-kinin
  system, microalbuminuria, tropomyosin gene
  expression
• 1995 Health psychology illness representations
• 1996 Register office - Epidemiology, North Wales
  retinopathy screening programme

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Developments (2)

• 2001 Clinical research Microvascular function
• Collaborations Brecon group, TCADS, Cardiff
  Diabetes Research group (Prof David Owens)
• Multicentre Clinical Trials Glycaemic control,
  neuropathy, heart failure, lipids, nephropathy

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Epidemiology

• Increasing incidence of diabetes in N Wales
• Better nephropathy outcomes
• Retinopathy 1 of diabetic patients in primary
  care need immediate laser
• Incidence of childhood diabetes
• Capture-recapture methodology

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Health Psychology

• Why should diabetic patients undertake self-care?
• Health beliefs/Personal models
• Common Sense Model
• Non-attenders
• Influence of personality and health threat
  communication

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Tropomyosin gene expression

• TPM influences the actin cytoskeleton
• Activation of integrins on WBC surface
• Increased uptake into atheromatous plaque
• Plaque instability rupture thrombosis
• Aim To determine which gene variants or
  glucose/insulin cause this to happen

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Outcomes

• Higher degrees PhD (V Lawson)
• MD (O Schmiedel, R Chudleigh)
• FY1 academic programme
• 41 Papers
• 57 Presentations
• Clinical Services Retinopathy screening 2001-5
• Microalbuminuria
  screening

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Conclusions

• Worthwhile research can be done in N Wales
• Positive impact Hospital profile
• Improves recruitment
• Training of individuals
• Education students, nurses, GPs,
• hospital doctors, pharmacists

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The future

• Further growth
• Undergraduate and postgraduate
• Betsi Cadwalldwr University LHB
• Glyndwyr University
• UCNW Bangor
• Clinical Research Network and CRC Cymru