A significant development in diabetes care has arrived in India.
Novo Nordisk has launched Awiqli (insulin icodec), a once-weekly basal insulin designed to provide insulin coverage for an entire week.
The difference in injection frequency is significant:
365 daily basal insulin injections a year
↓
52 once-weekly basal insulin injections a year
That means fewer injections and potentially a lower treatment burden for people who require basal insulin.
Why does this matter?
Managing diabetes is not only about controlling blood glucose. Long-term treatment also needs to be practical and manageable for patients.
Fear of needles, treatment complexity and the burden of frequent injections can become barriers to starting or consistently following insulin therapy.
India has more than 100 million people living with diabetes, making advances that can potentially simplify long-term diabetes management particularly important.
However, one clarification is important:
Once-weekly basal insulin does not mean that every person with diabetes will need only one injection per week. For example, people with Type 1 diabetes may still require mealtime insulin. Awiqli primarily replaces the daily basal insulin component with a weekly dose.
This is an interesting example of healthcare innovation moving beyond simply developing new medicines.
The bigger question is how effectively innovations like this can improve treatment experience, adherence and access for patients.
Better science is valuable.
But the real impact comes when better science becomes better healthcare.
Source: Linkedin- Bhumik Didwaniya {Agrawal}
