New findings from ARMMS-T2D study continue to show benefits of metabolic/bariatric surgery over medical interventions for those with type 2 diabetes

The 12-year Alliance of Randomized Trials of Medicine vs Metabolic Surgery in Type 2 Diabetes, or ARMMS-T2D, clinical trial continues to provide significant findings on the benefits of bariatric surgery over medical management, as presented during the 84^th annual American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions in Orlando, Fla.

Two sub-studies baring out these findings from the national ARMMS-T2D, of which Pennington Biomedical Executive Director Dr. John Kirwan serves as principal investigator, were presented during sessions on Saturday, June 22:

• “Quality of Life and Health Utility 12 Years after Randomization to Bariatric Surgery vs. Medical Therapy in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes and Obesity-The ARMMS-T2D Study,” presented by Dr. Donald Simonson of Brigham and Women’s Hospital
• “Association of Social Determinants of Health with Efficacy of Metabolic Bariatric Surgery (MBS) vs. Medical Therapy (MT) for Type 2 Diabetes,” presented by Dr. Mary-Elizabeth Patti of Joslin Diabetes Center

Dr. Simonson reported that bariatric/metabolic surgery yields greater long-term improvements in physical components of quality-of-life compared with medical management with a subset of ARMMS-T2D participants. For this aspect of the ARMMS-T2D study, 228 patients with type 2 diabetes participated, with 152 patients receiving metabolic/bariatric surgery interventions and 76 receiving medical/lifestyle intervention. The study showed that metabolic/bariatric produced sustained weight loss that correlated with better general health, physical function, energy, and less pain.

During her talk, Dr. Patti presented that the adverse impact of social vulnerability is greater for individuals treated with medical therapy when compared against metabolic/bariatric surgery.

Social determinants of health are known to impact a person’s metabolic health, and this study showed that in the 262 participants in this subset of the ARMMS-T2D study, metabolic/bariatric surgery is particularly beneficial for those with high social vulnerability when compared to traditional medical/lifestyle intervention.

“This is the largest and longest running study of its kind, and as we analyze subsets of the study, we continue to see the benefits of metabolic/bariatric surgery for patients living with type 2 diabetes,” said Dr. Kirwan, Executive Director and the George A. Bray, Jr. Endowed Super Chair in Nutrition at Pennington Biomedical. “This is the second year in a row that we are able to present major findings from ARMMS-T2D at the ADA Scientific Sessions, and I am proud of the outstanding team effort that brought together scientists from Pennington Biomedical, Cleveland Clinic, Harvard, Pittsburgh and Seattle to collaborate and contribute to this milestone study.”

The ARMMS-T2D study combined independent single-center randomized trial data from four centers in the U.S. – Cleveland Clinic, Joslin Diabetes Center/Brigham and Women’s Hospital, University of Pittsburgh, and University of Washington. The original trials, which were conducted between May 2007 and August 2013, evaluated the effectiveness of bariatric surgery compared to intensive lifestyle and medication therapy involving oral and injectable diabetes medications including insulin for adults with type 2 diabetes and overweight or obesity.

The investigators from the four individual studies pooled their data to provide a larger and more geographically diverse data set to evaluate efficacy, durability, and safety of bariatric surgery to treat type 2 diabetes. Follow-up data were collected through July 2022. 

Leading physicians, scientists, and health care professionals from around the world participate in the ADA Scientific Sessions, where cutting-edge research, treatment recommendations, and advances toward a cure for diabetes will be discussed.

About the Pennington Biomedical Research Center

The Pennington Biomedical Research Center is at the forefront of medical discovery as it relates to understanding the triggers of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer and dementia. Pennington Biomedical has the vision to lead the world in promoting metabolic health and eliminating metabolic disease through scientific discoveries that create solutions from cells to society. The center conducts basic, clinical, and population research, and is a campus of the LSU System.

The research enterprise at Pennington Biomedical includes over 530 employees within a network of 44 clinics and research laboratories, and 13 highly specialized core service facilities. Its scientists and physician/scientists are supported by research trainees, lab technicians, nurses, dietitians, and other support personnel. Pennington Biomedical is a state-of-the-art research facility on a 222-acre campus in Baton Rouge.

For more information, see www.pbrc.edu.